Her Lady, Sachiko Ever After
by MidnightFairyDust
Summary: After a spree of missing children is brought to the attention of the Queen, her Raven and Guard Dog are told to investigate. But no one anticipated being whisked away to the dimension of the cursed Heavenly Host Elementary School. Follow along as Ciel, Isabelle and their friends escape insanity and the undead in an attempt to unlock the strange mysteries behind Sachiko Ever After.
1. Prologue Her Lady, Haunted

_"To my Guard Dog and my Raven,_

_I write this letter to inform you of your next mission. For this particular mission, I request the two of you work together again. Let me explain the assignment. My servants have made me aware of this strange phenomena occurring in my fair country. There have been a series of missing children occurring throughout England, making it hard to pinpoint the exact cause for the strange disappearances. Because of the mass numbers of disappearing persons, I cannot supply you with an accurate list of all the victims and can't tell you of any possible leads thus far._

_I hope for a safe and swift return of the children to their families and I apologize in advance for the lack of evidence. I know that you will not fail me; I have my utter most faith in you, my beloved Guard Dog and Raven._

_I'd like to hear good news from you two very soon._

_-Queen Victoria."_

Ciel sighed, putting the letter down, staring out his study window deep in thought.

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Isabelle stood on the street corner, handing a newspaper boy his pay before taking a newspaper. She narrowed her eyes as she read the article of a Japanese author, raining drizzling onto the parchment.

_"__**Sachiko Ever After Charm**_

_The Sachiko Ever After charm is a charm the binds friendship eternally. This ritual is centered around a local folk legend from Tenjin. There, a young elementary school girl named Sachiko went missing. Even though she died within its grounds, it is said that her spirit still wanders the Earth, but she has been given powers to grant wishes and ease worries to others._

_This ritual is intended to induce communion with Sachiko's spirit and, if performed correctly, Sachiko will pass through and grant you her blessing; those involved in the spell will be bound together as true friends for eternity. However, if the ritual is not performed exactly as specified, Sachiko may be angered, which can only lead to trouble._

_The charm requires a specifically designed paper Sachiko doll. This paper proxy represents Sachiko, this design is meant to be printed out on white paper and must remain completely blank. In order to perform the ritual, at least two to ten participants are needed. With the paper Sachiko doll in hand, everyone needs to gather around in a circle and each individual must firmly grip the proxy doll._

_Then they must invoke Sachiko by chanting the phrase, in your head, "Sachiko, we beg of you" one time for each participant. After chanting, everyone holding onto the paper doll pulls it apart, leaving each person with a piece of the paper doll. It is suggested to keep this paper scrap on your person. And there you have it, a completed Sachiko Ever After ritual._

_-Naho Saenoki"_

Isabelle hummed in thought while furrowing her brow before a wind blew the article in the newspaper from her hands. She grabbed for it, but it floated away into the cloud covered sky, rain pouring down as Isabelle watched it drift from view into the grey of London's skies.

**OMFG IT'S FINALLY HERE! You guys have nooooo idea how long I've been waiting to do this story~ Yeah, I know it's a short chapter, but it's only the prologue soooo it'll explain some stuff for those who aren't familiar with Corpse Party. Please comment, favorite and follow, each is greatly appreciated~ **

**Stay creative my friends~**


	2. Chapter 1 Her Lady Charmed

p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""A Party?"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel raised his eyebrow at Isabelle, who was standing before his desk./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"She nodded, "more of a get together for some of our friends…" she replied leaning against his desk./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"He sighed, "we should really be working on this case…" he said, reading over the letter from the Queen and his newspaper./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"She nodded, "I know, but we shouldn't worry too much… there are no solid leads to go off of anyway…"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"He sighed, "then we should be looking for leads." he said sternly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"She sighed in return, "what do we look for? We just have to wait and see what else comes up…" she said, frowning subtly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel sat back in his chair, "it's even stranger that no one else is making a big deal out of all these missing children…"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle shrugged, going to his side behind his desk, "maybe that's why we were called to investigate, it might be underworld affairs almost erasing their existence from our world…" she stated, Ciel nodding,/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""It could be… That explains why the Her Majesty's servants brought it to her attention…"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle nodded and Ciel sighed in unison as he averted his gaze,/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Fine… we'll go to the get together…" he said, cracking a smile as Isabelle smiled brightly in return. She nodded excitedly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""I'll let them know then!" she said, clapping her hands together./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Later that very afternoon, Sebastian and Enobria escorted their masters to the little party. Ciel and Isabelle, dressed in proper event attire, dress and matching suit, exited their carriage with Ciel leading Isabelle to the door./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""So who is going to be here?" Ciel asked curiously./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle smiled softly, her petite arm around his, "many people we know, mostly my acquaintances."she stated, looking to the manor curiously, grey clouds staining the sky above./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Sebastian knocked on the grand wooden doors before them, which were decorated with finely polished designs. A maid then humbly opened the doors for them without a word, bowing her head to them as she allowed them inside, safe from the drizzle. Ciel and Isabelle glanced at each other before entering, thanking the maid who didn't respond./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel glanced down at Isabelle, hushing his voice to a barely audible tone, "That was strange…" he said before being cut off by an oddly enthusiastic voice./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Isabelle! What a pleasant surprise!" cheered a blonde boy who came running to greet her./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel narrowed his eyes at the male who took Isabelle's hand, kissing her knuckles gently, making her blush./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"He smiled, "I was so happy to hear you would be attending!" he said excitedly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle smiled back sweetly, "It was my pleasure, however, I do apologize for the short notice…"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Not at all!" he reassured her, ushering both her and Ciel into the grand hall where the gathering was being held./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Finely polished furniture decorated the room. Curtains of burgundy silk reaching the tall ceilings draped delicately over the clear and clean windows, the world outside darkening as rain droned on outside./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"The food had been set up buffet style, the guests who arrived prior to the couple already served. Ciel and Isabelle glanced around the room, speaking in hushed tones to each other when the blonde boy wandered off to mingle with the other company./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle narrowed her eyes gesturing to a pair of twins, talking to a girl with finely combed, silver hair cascading down her back./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel furrowed his eyebrows, "Mathias and Mariella Ardall. Twins of Baron Alexander and Baroness Joyce Ardall…" he said, thinking aloud./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"The two twins glanced at them quickly, studying the couple with their ice blue eyes./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Mariella pushed some of her blonde hair behind her ear, scooting closer to her brother, who wrapped an arm around her protectively yet sweetly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle pursed her lips slightly, "and that girl they're talking to is Narissa Campden, the daughter of Earl Nathaniel and Helen Campden."/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel nodded, Narissa's silver hair cascading to the side as she gazed at them, hearing her name. She smirked upon noticing them and, more importantly, who they were./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Ciel Phantomhive, Isabelle Tonnerre. What an honor it is to meet with you again." she said, tilting her head to the side slightly while approaching them./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Yes, it is a pleasure to see you as well Narissa." Ciel retorted somewhat sternly, tightening his hold around Isabelle's waist with a fake smile, which Narissa noticed. A smirk stretched across her face./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""I don't suppose you two are here emtogether/em, are you?" she asked, her smirk widening. Ciel narrowed his eyes, silently avoiding her question as Isabelle averted her gaze. Narissa went to speak when a boy interrupted, swirling a glass of champagne in his hand. He smiled softly, his coffee brown locks perfectly combed back, revealing his bright, emerald green eyes./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""I hope I'm not interrupting anything, Earl Phantomhive, Earl Campden, Duchess Tonnerre." He said politely./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle shook her head, "not at all, do not worry…" she said with a soft, reassuring smile./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel smirked, "Tobias Newman I presume." he stated simply in question./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Tobias nodded, "Y-yes, that's me, son of Earl Lewis and Blythe Newman. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Earl Phantomhive, Duchess Tonnerre…" he said, holding his hand out, which Ciel shook lightly, eye narrowed./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Tobias glanced at Isabelle who smiled softly, "It's a pleasure." she said sweetly, his cheeks dusted with a light pink blush as he tugged at his collar shyly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""O-oh no! T-the pleasure is a-all mine…" he said, stuttering as he blushed brighter./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel noticed his bashfulness and held Isabelle closer protectively. Tobias nodded subtly, understanding the silent message. Isabelle blinked in confusion, glancing between the two men. A girl with ebony black hair approached the group, coming to Tobias's rescue. She smiled softly,/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Tobias?" she called, going to his side. Isabelle blinked at the girl curiously./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Oh!" she exclaimed, "my apologizes… My name is Lydia. Lydia Corbett, a maid of the Larresay family." She said, bowing politely with her hand resting over her heart./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle nodded and curtsied respectively, "Isabelle Tonnerre." she stated quaintly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"The blonde boy approached again, wrapping his arm around Tobias's shoulders playfully, "Well it appears you all are getting along well." he said happily, his grin wide./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel sighed, "More or less…" he breathed before sneaking a kiss, putting his lips to Isabelle's forehead, making her blush./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Narissa smirked at the sight as the blonde clapped his hands./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Well that's great! Oh, for those of you who don't know, I'm Adrian Larresay, son of Earl Adam and Eleanor Larresay." He said with a bow./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Mathias led his twin to the group, who Adrian welcomed with open arms, literally. Mathias pinched Adrian's nose, scolding him for his attempt to touch Mariella./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Must you feel the need to touch my twin." he growled, annoyance in his tone as Adrian yelped childishly, trying to pull away from Mathias's grip./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""I-I'm sorry! Let go will ya?!" he pleaded before Mathias complied, releasing him./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian pouted childishly, holding his nose, "awfully harsh aren't you…"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Everyone except Adrian laughed at the sight, which only made Adrian's pout drag on./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"The rest of the night was full of laughs and stories, the evening merrily playing on with nothing to ruin the fun. At the peak of the night, Adrian had everyone take a seat on the floor in the middle of the grand hall, Isabelle sitting close to Ciel, one of his hands resting gently over hers. Adrian smirked and clapped his hands excitedly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Ok, so for tonight I would like everyone to participate in a little activity most of you have probably heard of prior to this." he chimed, bringing out a newspaper, along with a piece of blank, white paper cut in the shape of a person./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Octavia blinked in surprise, "Isn't that a Sachiko Ever After doll?" she asked curiously, tilting her head in question./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian smiled, holding it up on display for everyone to see as he answered excitedly, "uh huh!"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Tobias bit his lip, "t-that's a black magic ritual! I-isn't that necromancy…?" he asked nervously, shifting away uncomfortably./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Mathias smirked, "What? Are you scared of a little emwitch's/em spell?" he asked teasingly, his sister rolled her eyes./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Sachiko wasn't a witch." she breathed./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Mathias shrugged, "I'm aware."/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian smirked, waving at them for silence, "the backstory to this charm is based off of the mysteries behind Heavenly Host Elementary School in Japan. The school was a source of pride for this town, as no elementary school had stood within Tenjin's borders at all prior to its construction in 1832. Primary school students had previously been commuting to neighboring towns for class, and, consequently, Heavenly Host Elementary became the most desirable school to go into in that area."/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Mathias and Mariella cut in, speaking eerily in unison, "however, the reputation was slashed by a series of kidnappings and the murder of 3 elementary school students. 3 girls and 1 boy were found in the school's basement with the principles son, the murderer, in the room with them, cowering in the corner. Apparently, three of the children were killed with the weapon of choice being a pair of scissors. There was only one survivor, Sachiko Shinozaki, who witnessed the entire thing. It was torn down on November 18th, 1875 following the string of serial kidnappings and murders and, on the day of its destruction, the principle jumped from its roof and committed suicide, not wanting to see his precious school torn down before him." they finished, both laughing simultaneously as if amused by people's horrified reactions./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Narissa raised her eyebrow, "the charm was in the newspaper…" she added./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian smirked and nodded, "yes, it was. I just thought it would be a fun little thing to do with everyone. We may not all know each other very well, but I feel like this will ensure that we do become friends, and have it stay that way…" he said with a soft, hopeful smile as everyone glanced at each other curiously./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle narrowed her eyes at the paper doll as Ciel sighed./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""It's just a fictional ritual. There's no truth behind things like this…" he said, stifling a laugh. Narissa smirked, "are you afraid to do it?" she asked teasingly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel scoffed, "it's just a ridiculous children's game. Nothing more, nothing less."/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Narissa giggled, "then what's the shame in doing it if nothing will happen?" she asked, her smirk widening./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Octavia clapped her hands, "alright, alright! Are we gonna do this or not?" she asked everyone excitedly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Tobias and Lydia exchanged hesitant looks with everyone until Tobias sighed./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Oh alright…" he said somewhat nervously, Lydia smiling reassuringly for him./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian smirked, "ok, so all nine of us are doing it then!" he said/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian held out the doll in the middle of the circle as he glanced at everyone, the sky outside darkening black from the rain as it poured outside./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Alright, first, everyone grab onto the doll. Hold it tightly, dig your nail into it if you have to." he said with a smirk. Everyone nodded, grabbing their own section of the paper doll, holding it tightly as instructed./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;""Ok. Now we all must mentally chant the phrase: Sachiko we beg of you… nine times, yeah, nine times for all of us. Don't worry if you mess it up a bit, just don't stop. On three. One… two… three…!"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"On command, everyone's eyes squeezed shut, everyone mentally chanting the incantation. Adrian sighed a little later, opening his eyes, "everyone do it?"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Everyone nodded, Mathias rolling his eyes, "if you don't get on with it, I'm afraid I'll say it again."/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian nodded, "ok, now all we have to do it rip the doll apart into nine pieces. Pull on three. one…. two… three!"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"The doll was torn to pieces just as lightning illuminated the room with a loud crack, making Tobias and Lydia jump in fright, the rain outside pouring heavily. Each person bared their own piece, holding it tightly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian sighed with a smile, "ok, now hang onto this piece. Don't lose it… As long as we have them, we'll always be friends."/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel sighed, uninterested "is that it?" he muttered./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian nodded. Ciel sighed, putting his piece in his breast pocket, whispering to Isabelle, "well that was a waste of time." he said, stifling a laugh, making Isabelle giggle softly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Lightning cracked again and just as everyone got to their feet, the room back to quake./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle yelped, a sudden jolt throwing her to the floor, Ciel's eyes widened as he pulled her back to her feet and into his chest protectively, the room shaking with more force./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Tobias looked around frantically, attempting to maintain his balance, "w-what's going on?!" he asked hysterically, trying to stay on his feet./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian shook his head, arms out and eyes wide, "I-I don't know!"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Octavia shrieked, losing her balance as the room continued to quake. Windows cracked, furniture shifted and the floorboards began to split./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel pulled Isabelle away from the cracking floor, dragging her to the farthest wall with everyone else, Adrian and Mathias trying to shoulder open their only exit./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"The door were locked tight./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Mathias sighed irritably, trying to keep his panic from his tone as he turned to the others, "It's locked!"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Lydia's eyes widened, "W-who would lock us in her-"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Lydia was cut off as the floorboards fell beneath her./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"She screamed as she plummeted into darkness as everyone watched in horror before erupting in screams. Ciel's eyes widened. He forced Isabelle away, Mathias doing the same with his sister before two other screams followed./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian's eyes widened and Tobias yelled, "NARISSA! OCATAVIA!" he screamed before losing his footing among the crumbling floor, falling into the black along with them./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Mathias grunted, holding Mariella away before they too fell, reaching up for help as they plummeted into the abyss below./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Adrian shut his eyes fearfully, "d-dear god…" he stuttered in shock, haphazardly crossing his chest as he prayed, the room they were in crumbling to ruins around them./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel yelped grabbing a hold of Isabelle's hand, her eyes widening as he began to fall, her hand being the only thing holding him up as Adrian fell while screaming helplessly./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Isabelle grunted, holding Ciel panted as the decay of the floor crawled toward her feet beneath her./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"Ciel grunted, "I-Isa-"/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"The floorboards broke roughly, Isabelle falling head first into the pit, Ciel falling below her. They desperately grabbed for each other as they fell, both barely out of reach of the other as their hands flailed in their free fall, darkness completely consuming the room they were once in and the area around them before their world was completely dyed with blackness./p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"strongEnd of Chapter 1/strong/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"strong Ahhhh the tension will start building, you know especially if you know Corpse party~ Also, new characters! Please comment, favorite and follow, each is greatly appreciated~/strong/p  
p style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium;"strongStay creative my friends~/strong/p 


	3. Chapter 2 Her Lady, Alone

"N-nng…"

Isabelle squeezed her shut eyes even tighter, groaning. She exhaled as she slowly opened her eyes, her body stiff and her mind numb.

"U-uh…" she moaned, propping herself up on one elbow, her other hand rubbing her aching neck and head. A dark and heavy atmosphere eerily lingered all around her. Completely unfamiliar She squinted in an attempt to see, peering into the darkness before a crack of lightning illuminated the room.

She yelped, falling back onto her side.

The room around her was in ruins. She glared at the desks and chairs haphazardly thrown across the room. They were so small, as if previously used by young children. Her head throbbed again, making her groan sorely.

"M-my ankle… heaven it hurts…" she breathed, moving it slightly, "but it appears to be only a sprain…"

She got to her feet, wobbling in her half awake state, but then froze, one thing racing through her mind.

"Ciel?!" she called worriedly, the only voice coming back being her own echo.

She looked around frantically, "CIEL?!" she shouted again, more helpless.

She clutched her head, fearing for the worst, "A-Adrian?! Lydia, Mathias, Mariella, Tobias?! Octavia, Narissa?!- ANYONE?!" she screamed, dropping her head in a grip of defeat as tears threatened to escape her glazed eyes.

Her head was spinning as she looked around hysterically, an oppressing feeling fogging her mind.

"E-eh…" groaned a nearby voice.

Isabelle gasped in surprise and spun on her heels, peering in the direction on the sound. Isabelle clenched her fists, gathering her courage before approaching the sound in the dark. She froze and held her breath upon seeing a silhouette sprawled out in front of her.

The groan returned. She took a few steps forward before running to the person's side, rolling them over to see their face. She sighed shakily, holding them up in her arms, shaking them awake.

"Octavia…" she mumbled softly.

Octavia opened her eyes slightly, gazing at Isabelle with dulled hazel eyes, blinking several times before finding her voice.

"Isabelle…" she breathed, her voice scratchy and hoarse yet soft. Isabelle sighed in relief, helping Octavia sit up stiffly.

She looked around, "where are we…?" she asked, rubbing her eyes as her vision adjusted to the darkness around them, lightning cracking again outside.

Isabelle sighed, shutting her eyes, "I have no idea…"

Octavia huffed, getting to her feet, leaning on a rotted teacher's podium for support, Isabelle standing with her. "well let's go find out then!" Octavia said with a wink, giving Isabelle a thumbs up.

Isabelle rolled her eyes and cracked a smile, "well, the only thing I could deduce from our surroundings was that we're in some sort of school, most likely… an elementary school… seeing all these small desks…." she stated, gesturing to the desks and chairs.

Octavia nodded, "but how did we get here- where are we anyway?" she asked curiously yet cautiously.

Dim lights began to flicker on and off overhead, giving them a better visual of the room.

The floorboards had gaping holes in them,. The ceiling beams above were deteriorating along with the rest on the walls and floors. Windows were molded along the edges with thick layers of grim climbing up the glass and piling in the crevasses, and tacked up paper on bulletins were slowly decaying. They both studied the room in disbelief.

"It looks as if this place hasn't been touched in years, let alone once used as a school." Octavia said, running her finger over a thick layer of dust covering the teacher's podium. Octavia spotted a piece of paper tacked to a board and, curiously, read it.

"E-EH?!"

Octavia shouted, backing away from the paper in disbelief.

Isabelle narrowed her eyes, going to her side, "w-what is it Octavia?!" she asked worriedly.

Octavia bit her lip, "t-the paper… i-it says… Heavenly Host Elementary School..." she breathed, Isabelle's eyes widened in shock. "t-that can't be right!" she stuttered, reading the note for herself.

She blinked in shock, backing away just as Octavia had done, "i-it can't be… i-isn't that the school from…" her words trailed off in thought as Octavia nodded.

"The same place where that serial kidnapping happened… b-but how are WE here?! And where are our friends…?!" Octavia asked, worry in her voice.

Isabelle sighed and shrugged in defeat.

"Let's just try and get out of here. We can't give up before we've even tried, right?" Octavia said, trying to lighten the miserable mood. Isabelle nodded, both walking to some of the windows on one side of the wall. They both pulled at them, trying to open them, but to no avail.

Octavia panted, "n-no luck… I don't see them opening any time soon…" she breathed, putting some hair behind her ear. Isabelle huffed, lifting a chair before tossing it at the window which had no effect whatsoever.

Isabelle panted, "it's like they're not even there… as if they're just painted on the wall…"

Octavia sighed, "I guess we're not leaving through there…"

Isabelle nodded in agreement, watching the torn spider webs tangled in the loose floorboards and ceiling.

She bit her lip, "maybe we should leave this room and see if we can find the others…" she said, a worried frown crossing her face.

Octavia put on a reassuring smile instead, "don't worry Isabelle, we'll find everyone- Hell if we're doing alright then everyone else is too!" she said, giggling lightheartedly, making Isabelle crack a smile.

"Come, come, Milady!" Octavia called, looking around the room for an exit, the rain pouring violently outside. Octavia lit up, spying a door before jogging over to it, holding her dress up with one hand.

"Come help me with this Tonnerre!" she shouted, trying to pry open the door. Isabelle's eyes widened slightly as she followed, assisting Octavia with the door, slowly pulling it open. They both peered into the hall which was deathly silent.

They both glanced at each other before hesitantly venturing out of the room and into the empty corridor, which looked no better than the classroom in terms of its condition. They both stood side by side, glancing down both ends of the hall which led into more dark emptiness.

A torn paper caught Isabelle's eye. The two girls wandered over, studying the article written on the stained parchment.

_Heavenly Post: 'Third Student Reported Missing'_

_One by one, the young students of Heavenly Host ... School seem to be disappearing, as now a third student has joined the ranks of the missing. Classmates testify that fifth-grader ... was on her way home from school, but got separated from her friends in the hall and hasn't been seen since. Police are investigating the possibility of a serial kidnapping and have assigned countless investigators to the case in hopes of a speedy resolution. However, ten days have already passed since the first disappearance, giving parents and classmates ample cause for concern._

Some of the words were obstructed by splatters of red.

Isabelle and Octavia studied the article curiously.

"Three missing children… then this place is really Heavenly Host…" Isabelle gulped, thinking aloud with a shaky sigh, Octavia nodding in agreement as they set the article back where they found it. Isabelle sighed again, walking deeper into the halls,

"I wonder if there any more notes to fi- AH!"

_**CRACK.**_ Isabelle fell to the ground with a sickening crack, Octavia immediately kneeling by her side.

"I-Isabelle?!" she called, holding her up nervously.

Isabelle bit her lip, running her hand along her ankle, "m-my ankle isn't doing so good…" she said with a wince.

Octavia nodded, helping her up, "here…" she said softly, offering her shoulder, which Isabelle took graciously.

"Well, this is a school. It's gotta have an infirmary somewhere…" Octavia said, holding Isabelle up.

"Y-yes, that does sound logical… I wonder if we can find one… then we can find a way out of here…" Isabelle said with a wince, making Octavia frown worriedly.

The two girls walked down the hall cautiously, coming to a classroom door, which they hesitantly entered, having nowhere else to go.

The classroom was in the same deteriorated state as the rest of the building, crumbling and decaying horribly. Suddenly, Octavia screamed, pointing at something frantically. Isabelle yelped in surprise and fright, her gaze following Octavia's pointing finger.

There was a corpse sprawled out across the floor, lying on its side in a pool of blood. The carcass had rotted mostly, exposing bleached bones in the decaying meat.

Octavia stared at it with wide eyes, "i-i-is that a dead body?!" she yelled, hiding behind Isabelle for protection. Isabelle bit her lip, approaching the corpse to study it closer.

She gulped, "i-it's definitely not a prop of any kind…" she said, deeming the body authentic, which only made Octavia even more skittish.

"..._You two... You two are new victims, are you not?_" spoke an echoing voice, coming from nearby.

Octavia jumped, looking around frantically as Isabelle stared in disbelief at a blue flame ignited by the corpse, which seemed to be the object speaking to them.

"Y-yes, I believe so… Who are you?" Isabelle asked nervously, Octavia following her gaze to the supernatural, blue light.

"_I was brought here against my will... and confined... just like you..._" the spirit answered.

"Confined? Does that mean there's no way out of here?" Isabelle said, worry taking over her tone as her voice cracked some.

"_I'm afraid not. This school exists in a reality all its own, cut off from the world you know._" The spirit said.

"So why have we been brought here?" Octavia asked hesitantly, biting her lip in fear of getting an answer.

"_... 'They' brought you. They're constantly bringing new victims into the school. More and more, all the time... Sinless innocence, one after another... This is a cursed, multi dimensional nexus... multiple planes of existence, all piled on top of one another... created by powerful, vengeful spirits. 'Closed space' ... Or perhaps, 'Closed spaces' ... You, and we as well, are the unlucky victims of an inescapable abduction..._" the flame stated, flickering near the corpse as he continued.

"Closed... spaces?" Isabelle said in a questioning tone, stepping closer with genuine interest.

"_Indeed. And it seems that you two are not the only ones to of been brought here. I'm sensing numerous others... I don't know the exact number, but I do know that others were pulled into these close spaces at the same time as you... They are in the school._" the spirit paused for a moment or so.

"_..However... you cannot meet them. They are definitely in the school. But the space they occupy differs from the space we occupy... If you wish to see your friends, you must find some means of entering their space, or bringing them into the space... Even then, escape is nigh impossible... But at least you'll be able to die together..._" the spirit said, his tone almost pitiful for them.

"Why? Who are these vengeful spirits you speak of anyway?!" Isabelle said in a demanding tone, narrowing her eyes.

"._..I don't know... neither the motives of our captors... nor a means of escaping this hell... All I know... is that with some effort... you can at least live out your days together, in the same space. And that alone is a fate worth fighting for. Two heads are better than one. Your chances, and your opportunities, are so much greater when working together... do whatever you can... to find a way out of here... Don't end up... like us…_" the spirit finished, his tone longing and distraught, making Isabelle and Octavia frown, taking pity upon him.

Another door to the left of where they had entered swung open, some unknown force unlocking it for them. Both girls turned to it in surprise before the spirits voice cried out a final time.

"_No!_" he yelled before disappearing into thin air, the atmosphere around them thicker, almost suffocating.

They both turned their attention to a glowing apparition crouched over in the corner. They both stared at the ghost in shock, the little girl dressed in a torn red dress with long, matted black hair to match. Random, almost demonic and ominous, drawings began creating themselves on a blackboard in the front of the classroom.

Isabelle and Octavia screamed, leaving the room quickly through the newly unlocked girls panted in the hall.

"T-that was DEFINITELY a ghost…" Octavia breathed, glancing at Isabelle while slouched over, catching her breath. Isabelle nodded, wobbling on her bad ankle.

She panted shakily, calming herself through the adrenaline rush, "n-none of this makes sense… d-dammit all…" she said with a frustrated breath, "all I know is, we're not getting out of here easily if not at all…"

Octavia frowned before straightening up with a reassuring smile, "hey, i-it'll be alright… we just need to keep our heads on straight and think of a way out! I know we can do it, besides; you're the Queen's Raven! You can do anything." she announced with a wink, making Isabelle crack another smile before wincing.

Her ankle gave out; sending them both tumbling to the floor with grunts.

Octavia bit her lip, "we should really get you to that infirmary…" she urged worriedly.

Isabelle nodded, obediently while getting to her feet, letting Octavia help her walk as the two roamed the dark and empty halls, just the two of them.

After walking a little they found their way into a darkened and heavy hallway. Isabelle held her breath, limping along with Octavia as support before she gasped. At the end of the hall, was a chunky mess of blood and guts slammed against the wall violently. Organs, bones and flesh was tossed around in a blood splatter that fell to the floor in a gory mess that was once a person.

The girls looked on in shock.

"O-oh by god…." Octavia said, exhaling slowly while approaching the obliterated body, which was far beyond recognition, "i-it looks like this person was thrown against t-the wall… a-at super-human speeds…"

Isabelle said with a shaky breath. "h-how could someone do this…?"

Octavia, with a gulp, stepped back with her hands over her mouth, swallowing again as Isabelle stepped up to examine it.

"Repulsive…" she breathed, nearly stepping in the congealing puddle of blood. Octavia quickly turned her back to her, choking in an attempt to not throw up.

"S-Sorry!" Isabelle called, limping away from the corpse back to Octavia's side, who shook her head.

"N-no i-its fine…. L-let's just keep moving…"

Isabelle nodded and the two girls set off again further into the school, finding an entire other level of locked classrooms which weren't going to be opened.

Victim's' memoirs and other notes were strewn across the torn halls, each parchment decaying, leaving their stories behind.

But then both girls froze, standing before the basement door which was decorated with random protection charms. Isabelle pulled out the handles and sighed, luckily finding the nailed door wouldn't be opening any time soon.

_Do not enter under any circumstances. –Principle Takamine Yanagihori_

Octavia gulped nervously, "l-let's turn back… the hall ends here anyway…"

Isabelle nodded, "y-yeah… good idea…" she said, taking Octavia's hand, both of them heading back the way they came with one classroom door now thrown open.

They stood before the open door anxiously before nodding to each other, heading inside the dark room.

Upon entering, they noticed the skeletal remains of a girl with a large hole in her skull slouched over in a chair, a note wrapped around something in her bony hand. After mustering up her courage, Isabelle pried open the fingers which crumbled to the floor, dropping the note and object inside with Octavia retching at the sight.

Isabelle sighed, taking the note which was sloppily wrapped around a small silver key. She paused and read it.

_You're an idiot Koito. If you don't believe with all your heart, then we'll never get rescued. I thought we were friends!_

With a frown, Isabelle squeezed the key reassuringly and dropped the crumpled note back where it fell. She stood up, presenting the key to Octavia who blinked in surprise before smiling.

"It leads to an infirmary! We can patch you up there…" she said happily, taking Isabelle onto her shoulder gently.

Isabelle nodded, "yes please…" she said with a smile.

The two set off to a different part of the school with lifted hopes, entering the second floor containing the girls and boys bathrooms.

Isabelle led the way into the girl's bathroom and pulled at the stall doors, all empty and able to open except one. The middle stall was locked tight and didn't show any signs of even budging. Isabelle pulled at it again and froze, a voice echoing in her head.

_If you should die here… you'll experience the pain you felt at the moment of death for all of eternity. Heaven's completely cut off. No paradise. No nirvana. Just eternal pain._

Upon the thought being finished, a key appeared at the foot of the door. Isabelle blinked slowly as she emerged from her sort of motionless trance and picked it up, presenting it to Octavia who smiled.

Octavia then tilted her head, "where did that come from anyway?" she asked.

Isabelle looked away briefly, avoiding her gaze, "from inside the stall…" she said simply, choosing not to scare her with what she heard.

Octavia nodded with her usual smile, "well let's go then!" Isabelle smiled back and nodded, both leaving the bathroom. Isabelle glanced back, hearing a fleeting voice.

"M-Mathias?! C-come back…. P-please…!" sobbed the familiar voice.

Isabelle whispered under her breath, "Mariella…"

"Something wrong Isabelle?" Octavia asked, noticing her strange behavior with a concerned frown.

"Hm? O-oh nothing… I just thought I heard something… think nothing of it…" Isabelle said, returning to Octavia's side reassuringly.

Octavia nodded, "I-if you say so…" she mumbled, both girls leaving the lavatory areas.

While wandering the halls, Isabelle stopped and gazed at a door. Octavia turned upon noticing.

"What is it?" she asked curiously yet cautiously.

Isabelle blinked slowly without acknowledging she'd even heard Octavia, "we should try the key we found on this door." she said, approaching said door, Octavia nodding before joining her.

Upon turning the key, Isabelle gasped.

Octavia squeaked in surprise, releasing the key in fright, "a-are you alright?" she asked worriedly.

Isabelle shook her head, "Y-yes I'm fine… it just felt like… when I turned the key… and the door unlocked… my heart seemed to have almost skipped and beat in my chest…" she shut her eyes, the door opening wide.

"I have a really bad feeling about this room…"

Hesitantly, both girls entered the room.

The atmosphere heavy. Suffocating. The room's floor had collapsed for the most part, making the remaining half or so of the room completely inaccessible. A corpse lay sprawled out on the floor, a message in front of it which was painstakingly scratched into the floorboards with finger nails.

_Whatever you do… don't read the newspaper…_

Isabelle bit her lip, "w-we should really just leave…" she whimpered, looking to the door to retreat.

Octavia groaned, "y-yeah… but now I'm really curious about that newspaper…" she said, looking over to the torn parchment.

Isabelle sighed and complied and both of the girls wandered over to the paper. Octavia read aloud.

_Heavenly Post_

_'Breaking news: Serial Kidnapping Ends In Murder'_

_The good name of Heavenly Host Elementary School has been stained in blood today as horrific details on the recent wave of disappearances are revealed. Over the past month, numerous children have gone missing within the town, and authorities quickly turned to kidnapping as the most likely explanation. _

_Now investigators have located the whereabouts of these children, their findings far worse than anyone could've anticipated. The bodies of the absconded youths were discovered within the basement of the Heavenly Host Elementary School building on September 18th at around 7 PM. _

_Authorities further revealed that a male instructor from the school was found with them, alive but near catatonic, holding a pair of bloodied scissors. Each of the corpses appear to have had its tongue sev...ed and remove...ique mutilations far too grot….….g to describe._

Octavia gulped, backing away from the paper, "h-how awful…" she whined.

Isabelle sighed shakily, rubbing her face before both girls approached the door, "I believe I've heard of this before…" she said, stopping before the exit.

Both gazed in disbelief, frozen where they stood.

The door was locked tight.

Isabelle pulled on the door handles, "no luck!" she said, her voice shaking as she tried to mentally quell her panic.

Octavia glanced back at the paper, the article distorting into a single phrase while a distant female voice sobbed.

_You will never leave this room…_

"O-oh god, t-this isn't good…" Octavia said with a whimper, Isabelle gritting her teeth.

"This is your fault you know…" she said coldly, turning her attention away from the door to face Octavia.

"E-eh? What do you mean?" Octavia said, staring at Isabelle in hurt and disbelief.

"J-just… never mind!" Isabelle shouted in frustration.

And just then, the door opened again.

Both girls took the opportunity to dart into the hallway before it could close again, and stood outside, panting.

"T-that could've gone b-better…" Octavia breathed, and then whined.

Isabelle turned, "what is it?"

"My paper scrap… it's gone…" she said with a pout.

"I've told you to find better places to keep things…"

"Yeah, yeah…" Octavia muttered sadly.

Isabelle put on a reassuring smile, "oh come on, it'll be alright… it's just a paper scrap after all and you're still alive and well…" she said, heading down the hall.

Octavia nodded slowly before following close behind, "I guess…"

Isabelle nodded back before another crunch came from her ankle, causing her fall to the floor with a yelp of pain.

Octavia gasped and immediately kneeled at her side, "we should _really_ get you to that infirmary…" she said with a worried frown.

Isabelle nodded, "Yes please…" she breathed again, Octavia helping her up.

"Here, lean on my shoulder…" she said, Isabelle supporting herself on Octavia graciously. "Thanks, I don't know what I'd do without you Octavia…" she said with a soft smile.

Octavia giggled, leading her through the halls, "Think nothing of it friend…"

After walking for what felt like forever, Octavia gasped lightly.

"Here!" she shouted, making Isabelle jump with a wince in surprise.

Octavia smiled, gazing up at a hanging sign above a rotting door reading _"Infirmary"_. Isabelle smiled, taking out the key they had found earlier.

"Let's see if this will work…" she said, handing the key to Octavia who nodded in agreement, returning the smile.

Leaving Isabelle's side for a moment, Octavia pulled at the door, which opened easily with a creak.

"Ha!" Octavia exclaimed victoriously, making Isabelle giggle while the brunette led her inside the dark room.

"See? We make a pretty good team, don't we?" Octavia declared with a bright smile.

Isabelle nodded, smiling softly back, "it's really amazing what our teamwork has accomplished thus far… I fear we might not be around much longer without each other…" she said with a sigh. Octavia nodded in agreement with a quick hum before both stepped into the center of the room.

The atmosphere definitely differed from the rest of the building; however, Isabelle chose to ignore it, seeing Octavia was not affected by the change.

The room, like every other, was torn apart, the floorboards and ceilings falling apart at the seams. Cabinets with assortments of medicine lined the walls, along with a desk in the center of the back wall with an empty journal affixed to it. In the far right corner was a sink. The handle turned, however no water came out.

Isabelle frowned at the sight, "I guess I didn't realize just how thirsty I was until now…" she breathed, swallowing dryly.

Octavia smiled, wandering over to the beds, "it'll be alright… and hey, you can come rest over here… the beds appear to be surprisingly clean." she said happily, dusting them off with her hands as Isabelle joined her.

"Somehow I expected them to be dustier…" Isabelle said with a soft sigh of relief as Octavia helped her climb up onto the bed, tearing off of her heavy gown to the thin white dress slip underneath that was still decently concealing. Octavia smiled, leaving the dress heap to the side, "now you can finally rest your weary bones, Isa," she said happily, "now, let me see if I can get you something for that sprain…"

Octavia left Isabelle sitting on the bed to search the room and Isabelle smiled.

"Thank you Octavia, you're a lifesaver…"

Octavia waved her finger at her teasingly , "ah, ah, ah! Don't thank me yet, I haven't done anything." she chimed, giggling lightheartedly while searching.

Isabelle smiled after Octavia returned shortly.

"This'll work well as a makeshift splint, though I wish I could give you some ice…" Octavia pouted while kneeling down, tending to Isabelle's swollen ankle.

Isabelle shook her head, "you've done enough for me. Really, thank you Octavia…" she said, lying down on the far bed in the corner after Octavia wrapped her ankle and climbed into the bed beside her.

Both girls lay facing each other in their own beds, eyes closed as they attempted to sleep.

"We'll find everyone soon… ok?" Octavia whispered, breaking the silence. I

sabelle opened her eyes to look at her but she had already fallen asleep after speaking.

Isabelle smiled and whispered to herself, "Of course, we will find everyone… Octavia…" she said with a soft smile and a yawn, shutting her eyes again while deep in thought.

"_I've been pretty curt with Octavia since we got here… I should be sure to apologize later…"_

Suddenly, another cry cut through the silence.

"_Mathias! W-where are you?! W-where are you…"_

Both girls' eyes snapped open.

"That was Mariella!" Isabelle blurted out, sitting up abruptly as Octavia nodded, getting off the bed.

"I'm going to go take a look." she said, dusting off her dress.

"I really don't think that's a good idea." Isabelle retorted, swinging her legs off the bed, but Octavia stopped her.

"No I insist! You stay and rest your ankle." Octavia said almost sternly. Isabelle bit her lip nervously.

Before she could protest again, Octavia left.

Time passed and Octavia didn't return. Isabelle sighed nervously.

_"Dammit Octavia… where did you go…"_ she thought, getting off the bed, limping to the door. She pulled at the door handles and the door didn't open.

"E-Eh?" she muttered, pulling at the door again with no luck.

Her eyes then widened in horror.

The door was suddenly latticed with strands of thick black hair.

She backed away from the door in frustration, cursing under her breath before the eerie laughter of children cut through the room, the atmosphere becoming heavier around her. She groaned as her head began to pound and throb.

_"Let's all go on a field trip together over summer vacation…"_

Isabelle gasped in surprise, looking for the source of the women's voice while trying to gather up her courage.

"W-who… was that?" she asked aloud, approaching the desk against the back wall.

The pages in the journal began to turn by itself, words appearing on the pages as if someone was writing in it at that very moment.

"_Sachi… Have you come to find me?"_

A mist of black suddenly appeared before the desk.

Isabelle yelped and backed away in fright, nearly losing her footing with her bad ankle, the dark entity approaching her. She yelped, looking around frantically before dodging it, searching frantically for a way out.

Upon her frantic searching, she found matches and a bottle of rubbing alcohol and gasped, dodging it again before running to the door while screaming helplessly for rescue, the floorboards being caved in around her.

"Come on, come on!" she shouted, splashing the alcohol against the black strands before igniting them.

Each hair burned away before the door was able to be opened, a foul smell wafting up with the heat from the fire.

Isabelle gasped and threw herself into the hall, the malevolent force grabbing at her as she exited, but couldn't seem to leave the infirmary. She panted shakily, on her hands and knees in the empty hallway.

Her eyes widened as the voice of the women echoed into the hall.

"_I will kill you…"_

_**SLAM.**_ The door slammed shut on its own and locked in place.

Isabelle whimpered helplessly before crawling away from the door to a wall. Using one hand to support her on the wall, she retched and threw up onto the rotting wallpaper. Gasping for air shakily through puking, she whimpered, the pressure in her head still present.

"ISABELLE?!"

Octavia screamed her name, running down the hall before skidding to a stop at her side, placing her hand on her back. Isabelle looked up and gulped while panting, her body quaking.

Octavia frowned deeply, eyes wide, "a-are you alright?!" she asked worriedly, rubbing her friends back.

Isabelle nodded, controlling her breathing, "I-I'm fine…" she breathed, sitting up to meet Octavia's anxious gaze.

Octavia helped Isabelle up to her feet, "what happened? You look so scared…" she asked, biting her lip nervously.

Isabelle wiped her mouth clean, "t-there was some kind of… dark entity was in there… i-it wanted to… t-to…" she choked back her words. Octavia nodded in understanding before she'd have to explain.

"I-I'm so sorry for leaving you in there…" she said guiltily, lowering her gaze.

Isabelle shook her head, "don't be… you and I had no way of knowing that would happen…" she said, her tone reassuring.

Octavia nodded, putting on her usual smile, "well… I'm just glad you're ok…" Isabelle returned the smile and Octavia sighed.

"Well, let's get a move on…"

Isabelle looked at her, tilting her head in question with a sneer, "Where? We've been all over this school and haven't found any means of getting out. And all of the people we've seen have all been long dead…" she said, her tone distant.

Octavia's smile faded to a surprised frown.

_"Dammit… there I go again…" _Isabelle thought, a frown washing over her face as she looked away. Octavia went to speak again as Isabelle shook her head.

"It's hopeless… we're finished… and I'm so tired and thirsty… a-and hungry… and scared…" Octavia's frown deepened.

_"I'm acting like a child. What's wrong with me…?"_ Isabelle thought, chewing her bottom lip.

"I-Isabelle… C-come on, it's not that bad! We'll figure something out, I'm sure of it! Besides, the only thing we have to fear is fear itself, we'll be ok…" Octavia said with a determined smile, "besides, I've got guests coming tomorrow at noon and I'm determined to be there to greet them! And how about afterwards we have tea at my manor? OK?" she asked almost pleadingly, tilting her head to the side, smiling just as usual,

"If we stick together, there isn't anything we can't accompli-"

"What the bloody hell has you so chipper?" Isabelle snapped coldly.

Octavia's smile faded away as her eyes widened in disbelief.

"All you've done since we got here is smile and laugh. Tell me… how long that will keep up if it turns out we can't leave this godforsaken place?!" Isabelle shouted, raising her voice as Octavia sunk back in utter shock.

"I-Isabelle…"

"Have you given that any thought at all?! 'We'll figure something out' … That's just a false hope and you know it!" Isabelle shouted, gritting her teeth.

"Who…" Octavia shook her head, "who says things like that?!" she yelled, catching Isabelle off guard.

"I-I want to get home just as bad as you do you know! I have a family who is probably worried about me and dear friends!" she shouted, choking back tears as her voice began to crack, "and I sure as hell don't want them to worry about me!"

"_I should apologize… this is my fault..." _

Octavia shut her eyes, her own lip quivering, "but most of all… I don't want you… of all people… to talk to me like that…"

"O-Octavia… I-I'm… I-I'm…" Isabelle stuttered.

"I-its f-fine…" she mumbled, her voice shaking as she choked back tears, glaring back up at Isabelle, whose azure eyes widened slightly, "m-maybe we _should_ just split up… we'll cover more ground that way… right?" Octavia continued, averting her gaze while rubbing her arm in hurt.

_"No, that's not what I want!"_ Isabelle thought, trying to bring herself to say those words, but just couldn't seem to do so.

"Ok…"

Isabelle replied simply, a pang hitting her heart, knowing she shouldn't have agreed.

Octavia nodded brokenly at the response before trudging deep in the dark halls all alone, leaving Isabelle with herself.

She shook her head, speaking aloud, "why- why couldn't I tell her what I really wanted… I know it's a bad idea for us to split up- so why did I agree with her… and why was I so cruel to her…?" she asked herself with a frown, rubbing her head.

After standing silent for a while, Isabelle sighed.

"nothing I can do about it now…" she said softly.

With that, Isabelle stepped away, heading off in the opposite direction, being swallowed up in the dark halls, thinking deeply about the heated exchange.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Octavia wailed brokenly, sobbing to herself all alone.

"D-dammit Isabelle… y-you jerk…" she said with a whimper, wiping her tears away. She sniffled and continued wandering the halls before stopping.

"S-Someone's… calling to me…" she thought aloud, turning her head to face the sound.

With an exhale, she turned and started walking, following the voice while deep in thought.

_"That was the first time huh…"_

She continued off into the dark of the halls, not looking back.

"_The first time… Isa and I fought…"_

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

"OCTAVIA!?"

Isabelle screamed as she ran through the school, searching frantically for her dear friend.

"WHERE ARE Y-YOU!?" she yelled, sobbing through her shouts.

She panted heavily and shakily, her head throbbing. Her mind was foggy, as if something had taken control of her.

She sobbed harshly, "O-Octavia… c-come back… p-please... I-I don't want to b-be all alone…"

In her disoriented state, Isabelle wandered up to the lavatories on the second floor and stumbled inside the girls' bathroom.

"O-Octavia…?" she called helplessly.

Getting no response, she whimpered and wobbled to the center of the room before dropping to her knees. While trying to calm herself down, she took notice of a foul stench lingering in the air. She raised her head, rubbing the tear stains on her cheeks while gazing at the bathroom stalls.

A pool of blood was slowly forming outside of the middle stall. With a shaky hand, she reached out and pulled on the handle slightly.

Something heavy was leaning up against it inside.

She adjusted her body to face the door, her knees on the edge of the puddle of red. She pulled again and the door opened, pushing against something in the stall that resonated a sickening crunch and squish before the bloodied object flopped out of the stall and into Isabelle's view.

Isabelle looked on in horror.

Her eyes were wild and bloodshot as she stared at the corpse before her.

A perfect cut separated the body into two parts, the intestines cut to pieces, spilling out of the gaping hole where the upper torso once was, along with some other organs. The upper half was face down in front of the other piece. The lower half had the legs bent, resting on the knees while the pelvis slouched forward. The tattered skirt was draped sloppily over the legs coated in a thick layer of fresh blood.

With an already weakened mental state, Isabelle stood frozen, not knowing what to do or how to react for that matter as she internally crumbled.

She clutched her head as she screamed bloody murder.

"NO! O-oh God, no! PLEASE NO!" she crawled helplessly over to one half the corpse, pulling the bloody mess up into her lap as more chunks of guts and fragments of bone spilled out.

Her body quaked violently as she moved the bangs that covered the body's opaque, expressionless eyes which blended with the corpse's ghostly white skin, a trail of blood leaking from the hanging jaw. She clenched her own jaw.

"N-No… Octavia! P-Please don't leave me alone! DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE IN THIS GOD FORSAKEN PLACE!" she ordered, shaking her friend's corpse helplessly.

Fresh tears trickled down her cheeks as Octavia's blood stained her skin and dress.

She squeezed her head tightly, dropping the already rotting carcass.

Her head felt as if it would burst, her ears were ringing.

Her pulse throbbed through her tense body as the painful feeling of loneliness enveloped her. She couldn't take it.

It was the very essence of madness lingering in the air and it was slowly, yet surely, consuming her.

**End of Chapter 2**

**Oh my gerd! That's the end of chapter two, and, as to be expected, shit hit the fan. People are dead and Isabelle is now crazy. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please comment, favorite and follow, each is greatly appreciated~**

**Stay creative my friends~**


	4. Chapter 3 Her Lady, Lost

_Two girls sat peacefully upon a patio, enjoying the breeze of a fresh spring day, the scent of blooming flowers wafting gently through the air. _

"_It's so peaceful out here during this time of year… the flowers are just coming into bloom and falls hot colors have given way to bright spring pastures… don't you agree?" _

"_Hm? O-oh… my apologizes… I-I…"_

"_He-he, daydreaming again are we? That's so typical of you, Lady Tonnerre."_

"_I-is it really?! I never saw myself as much of a daydreamer…"_

"_Yes, well, I see you as one. People that daydream are people who are constantly searching for greener pastures, even if they've already found it. But it's not a bad thing… daydreamers are creative, yet sweet and quiet people who always make the best of friends. You're quite an accurate example Isa."_

"_Hm… I guess I'll take that as a compliment… thank you… it means a lot Octavia…"_

_She laughed happily, "Think nothing of it my friend."_

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

"N-no… o-o-oh d-dear God… n-no…"

With hitched breathing, Isabelle knelt before the middle stall of the girl's bathrooms. The cut corpse of what was once her dearest friend was cradled in her lap, blood soaking into the thin white dress slip that covered her quaking body. "Y-you promised… y-you promised w-we would g-get out of h-here t-together…! Y-you left me alone!"

Isabelle sobbed harshly, clutching the carcass brokenly. Darkness consumed her at that moment, clearing her of any sanity as her last light of hope faded from her grasp. She clenched her jaw, fresh tears staining her cheeks.

"OCTAVIA!"

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**Start of Chapter 3**

Ciel froze, looking to the exit of the classroom, worry washing over him. "Isabelle…"

A frown crossed his face as he instantly recognized the scream of his beloved. Narissa grunted, pulling her attention away from the windows, giving up on trying to pry them open. "Was that her…?"

"Yes…" he sighed longingly. "I'm going to find her." he said, leaving his seat by a teacher's podium, forgetting his suit jacket while heading to the door. However, Lydia stopped him, "L-Lord Phantomhive!? W-With all due respect, please remain here."

She bit her lip, staring at him desperately as he scowled. "I cannot just sit here! THAT was definitely Isabelle's scream and I will not allow myself to laze around while she is in trouble!" Lydia's eyes widened slightly as the Earl stood his ground, undeterred before her.

He pushed past her to the door before Narissa stopped him, gripping his shoulder roughly. "Go investigate Lydia. I'll deal with the Earl." Narissa stated with a huff, Ciel grabbing at her while yelling and struggling in protest.

Lydia nodded obediently and hesitantly stepped out into the halls of ruins. She sighed, walking down the hall cautiously, deep in thought. A poster adorned the wall.

"_Return home immediately. Those who remain here will go hungry and die of starvation."_

She gulped nervously and left it behind, heading deep into the halls while thinking, "_My master… and all of his guests… I can't bear to know they might be in trouble in this godforsaken place… as a maid… it is my duty to find them. Everyone… please… stay safe…_"

Lydia soon found she couldn't access the second floor and, therefore, continued down the halls until she found an open classroom, 3-A, much like the one Ciel, Narissa and she were in. She mustered up her courage before going inside. The atmosphere was heavy. The room's floor had collapsed for the most part, making half of the room completely inaccessible, but other than that, the room was bare.

She bit her lip nervously and walked toward the center of the room. Suddenly, a blue flame ignited before her. She yelped in surprise and fright, backing away with wide eyes as the flame let off a paranormal glow, _"Well, if it isn't the maid. Are you all by yourself? Decided to stop shaking and shivering with the other two back in 1-A did you?"_

She narrowed her eyes slightly, looking at the spirit sternly, "Yes. And I'll have you know that I came to find one of my master's friends."

The spirit thought about her response, _"I see. Regrettably… that won't be possible. This school exists in a nexus where multiple dimensions overlap. It's but a single closed space in a sea of closed spaces. In other words, even though you may be in the same school as the screaming miss, you and she occupy different dimensions. Which means you two can never meet."_

"_If one of you should die, perhaps your body or your spirit may move from one space to another… or… maybe you can find some means of traversing the planes freely, as 'they' do… So consider this fair warning. Even if you should find the exact spot from which the duchess's scream emanated… she herself may not be there. And if she isn't… there's not a thing you can do about it…"_

Lydia bit her lip, raising her voice slightly in protest, "B-but I heard her voice!"

The spirit continued, "_It is true that other children have been brought here quite recently. Children who, by all appearances, appear to be of noble blood, who you must serve nonetheless. But, as I suggested, time and space do not behave as you'd assume here. They're… fragmented."_

"_You say you heard a scream. That scream may have only taken place a few minutes ago… or, perhaps… it occurred in another space many hours previous… It may even be an echo from the future… Who's to say?"_

"_With this phenomenon the way it is, it's entirely possible for two closed spaces to have some small influence on one another, even when out of sync" _he finished.

Lydia shook her head stubbornly, "Even so, I cannot ignore the agonizing scream of one of my master's dear friends! Step aside!" she ordered, stepping through the spirit sternly. The spirit distinguished into thin air without another word.

She huffed and made her way to the door. But, suddenly, it shut and locked in place, the room growing heavy and dark. She was then pushed back by a strong, supernatural force. She yelped and stumbled, catching her balance quickly before looking to the door. A red flame ignited before the closed entrance.

"_Step aside?! … Why don't you fuck off you damn peasant…!" _the spirit boomed. An earthquake followed his shouts, making Lydia gasp as she tried to keep her footing, bumping into a shaking glass cabinet by the door. She screamed.

_Crash_. The heavy cabinet fell onto of her, crushing her back and pressing her into the rotting wood floors. Something supernatural seemed to be pushing the cabinet down on her aggressively as if it was trying to crush her. She yelled out in pain. Glass from the viewing windows dug into her sides and back, forming deep lacerations that bled heavily. She glanced up, the case over her back, leaving her shoulders and up exposed, allowing her to look at the spiritual red glow.

_"In all the world, the most vile, untrustworthy people of all… are you maids… All you care about is your own well-being! You're not worried about your masters! You're just worried about being held responsible for your master's mistakes!"_ the spirit shouted lividly. She groaned and yelled in agonizing pain as the pressure continued to become greater, the force stronger, her bones crunching.

"_You're all the same. Every last one of you! When ever you see a problem with your master you simply brush it off! Have to keep up your wretched appearance, correct?! Then you can stab them in the back with forbidden affairs or even stealing from them!"_the spirit boomed. Lydia groaned in excruciating pain, "t-that's… not…"

He continued, cutting her off, _"I've never met a servant who ever TRULY cared about their master! Not once!"_

"Y-You… you're… w-wrong…" she protested feebly, her breathing shallow as the pressure snapped each of her ribs and punctured her organs, making her cry out in unbearable pain, "AHHHHH!"

"_All of those nobles, even your 'dear' master, they are destined to starve to death in these godforsaken halls… if they don't succumb to depression and kill themselves first! There is no other possible outcome! They'll all die meaningless deaths… just like I did! And they sure won't be thinking of YOU when they take their final breaths!_" the spirit declared, pushing the case down harder, more sickening cracks resonating from her rib cage, blood seeping out from under the case as she retched, blood coming from her mouth as well.

"_Any last words, bitch? I'll tell them to your master and his guests as I end their miserable lives!"_ he roared, pushing further on the case. She retched and groaned out incomprehensible phrases, making him laugh madly. _"Come again?"_ he asked teasingly.

"S-spare… m-my… master… a-and... h-his f-friends…. I-I beg… o-of you…" she pleaded weakly before coughing harshly. He scoffed in disbelief angrily but she continued, "p-please… i-I don't care… what h-happens to me… just… p-please… spare my m-master and his friend's precious lives!" she begged.

"_You're still pretending to care about them? Even with them not being of your own blood…"_ he scoffed, _"Filthy liar… Did you know? When you die here, you experience the pain you felt at the moment of death for all eternity? And I'm going to crush you into dust. The pain must be unbearable… unimaginable... and you're going to feel that pain every moment of every day, forevermore..."_

Lydia panted and wheezed helplessly, shutting her eyes tightly in absolutely agonizing pain. _"Ask me to spare YOU. It's what you really want, isn't it? Be honest with me… and I'll consider sparing your life." _the spirit scoffed teasingly.

"D-Don't you dare harm a single… h-hair on their heads… y-you hear me?!" She demanded, rasping weakly. The spirit scoffed and the cabinet was pushed again. She yelped hoarsely and let her head hit the floor hard. She gritted her teeth, thinking to herself, "_This is excruciating… m-my ribcage is definitely broken… Dear God… please… everyone… live… I-I… love you… all…" _she pleaded mentally before darkness took her, sending her into unconsciousness.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

The room shook, sending Narissa to the ground as Ciel fought to keep his footing, clutching the teacher's podium for support. "A-another earthquake!?" he shouted in question.

The rumbling finally halted. Both sighed in relief, Narissa joining Ciel. She then frowned and looked to the door. Ciel raised an eyebrow curiously, "What is it?"

"I just got a really bad feeling… we… we should go look for Lydia!" she huffed stubbornly, heading to the exit. Ciel narrowed his eyes and sighed irritably before following her from the room into the hall. They both wandered the halls together before they both stopped dead in their tracks.

A gaping hole separated the two ends of the hall and completely cut off the entrance to classroom 3-A. Narissa frowned. Ciel sighed, running his fingers through his hair, cursing under his breath in frustration. "Come on… there was another hall back the way we came. Maybe we can find another way around." He stated, Narissa following him quietly.

Narissa followed Ciel for a while before taking the lead, making him sigh irritably once again. She peeked into the school's entranceway and lit up, running straight for the front doors. She pulled at them while Ciel searched the tiny cubby holes curiously, but to no avail. The door might as well have been painted on. Narissa sided, leaning her head against the door in defeat. "Dammit…" she breathed.

Ciel sighed, Narissa walking away from the door, making him follow her down another hall before both froze. They both screamed in horror at the numerous corpses sprawled out before them, each mostly decomposed but completely authentic. Ciel gulped, gripping Narissa's shaking shoulders, "l-let's just keep moving…" he said shakily, moving her away from the carcasses.

"_Ki… za… mi…"_

Both froze immediately, hesitantly turning back to the corpses to find the source of the distressed voice. Narissa looked around with wide eyes, her body starting to tremble in fear. Ciel clenched his jaw, moving her again, "I said let us go…" he said sternly, glancing back at the numerous corpses as they left.

They both wandered aimlessly through the halls before coming to another classroom after passing a particularly fresh body, coated in drying blood. Ciel led a skittish Narissa into the classroom with a sigh, but then noticed how different it was from the other rooms in the school.

Suddenly, Narissa dropped to her knees, clutching her head with a groan in the corner. Ciel blinked in surprise and knelt down at her side worriedly, "A-are you alright?!" he asked anxiously.

"My head… is splitting…" she whimpered, "w-we… shouldn't be… in here…" He narrowed his eyes nervously before peering down the hall, getting to his feet in the process before helping Narissa to her feet. They both nodded to each other before slowly making their way to the back of the classroom.

Both of their eyes widened fearfully at an apparition of a young boy crouched in the corner, who didn't seem to notice either of them. Narissa whimpered lightly, taking Ciel's hand. He sighed shakily and looked around and took notice of a nail pulled on the floor. He gulped and reached out, picking it up before standing up straight with a sigh. The boy stared straight at him.

Ciel stared straight back with wide eyes. Before the ghost could make any moves, Narissa grabbed Ciel's arm and dragged him from the room and into the hall. Ciel stumbled and shook his head in confusion. Narissa pointed at him, "You cannot EVER look into a spirit's eyes ok!?" she scolded. He blinked in surprise, but nodded obediently.

She sighed and turned. At that moment, she came face to face with the boy, her eyes widened as he ghost reached out.

"_Chhlme… wifff… mhee…" _

Narissa gasped lightly, almost entranced by the spirit. Ciel gritted his teeth and grabbed her shoulders, dragging her away down the hall in an attempt to escape. They both ended up back in classroom 1-A, Ciel panting softly. Narissa groaned, her state of mind clearing up. "S-sorry Lord Phantomhive…" she said with a sigh.

Ciel sighed in return, taking notice of a nailed door in the front of the classroom while Narissa looked around, finding there was no sign of Lydia returning. She frowned. Ciel grunted, pulling the nails from the door and threw it open, the rusted nail puller snapping under the pressure.

The two peered into the heavy room, which resembled the odd classroom they had seen before. Narissa stepped forward first. In the back of the classroom was some sort of control mechanism with a strange, elaborate pulley system rigged with a network of fine, translucent threads. Narissa grabbed the handle lightly, 'I wonder what it does…" she thought aloud.

Ciel then pushed her hand down on the lever, causing it to jam in place as something above shifted. "Lord Phantomhive!" she protested in shock, letting go of the handle in fright, not knowing what exactly happened or what would happen afterwards.

Ciel sighed, "We couldn't just stand here cowering over what might happen. That will get us nowhere. Now come on, the shift came from the second floor so something must have changed." He stated bluntly, leaving the room with an irritated Narissa following.

The two wandered back up to the second floor. They soon found that the apparition of the boy was currently wandering the second floor, but didn't take notice to them as they slipped back into the strange classroom which contained a similar pulley system that they found downstairs. Of course, Ciel pulled it, more shifting resonating from down the hall, the two smiled and mentally celebrated their progress.

They both laughed lightheartedly as they exited the room, but quickly silenced when they found the ghost boy just outside the door. They yelled and dodged his gaze, taking off down the hall with Ciel pushing Narissa ahead of him. "Don't look back ok! Just keep running!" he shouted, panting heavily.

She nodded obediently, listening to him for once. She took the lead and guided him to a newly opened hall in the school, quickly ending their mad dash. Both hunched over and panted heavily, "t-that was… unexpected…" Narissa breathed as she caught her breath.

Ciel panted heavily, making her frown in concern. She put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "Are you alright?" she asked, somewhat worried. He sighed shakily and swatted her away, straightening up, "I'm fine… do not worry about me."

Narissa nodded, letting him catch his breath before walking again, finding their way past the infirmary and down another endless hall. They both continued until reaching a stairwell and then stopped dead in their tracks.

"_Ki… za… mi…"_

Ciel turned, "Who is that person they keep speaking of…?" he asked hesitantly, the corpse being that of an older teenager, freshly killed and resembling the first corpses they encountered.

Narissa bit her lip, "I get the feeling this person was surprised… he died quickly and suddenly…" she finished with a worried frown, rubbing her arms in an attempt to comfort herself. Ciel nodded, taking her hand. He led her up the stairs to yet another floor of the enormous school. Upstairs, the two located the girl's and boy's bathrooms. The two then wandered into the girl's bathroom.

The room was usually cold. They both nervously entered, and then noticed a stain on the floor, in the shape of a person. "W-what is this…?" Narissa asked nervously, Ciel coming to her side, frowning cautiously.

"I-I don't know… but… I feel as though… this person… is in so much pain… I can feel her grieving… it's unbearable…" He said softly, his frown deepening as Narissa took notice, frowning as well. They both stared at the stain, taking pity upon the mysterious person before Narissa shook her head.

"Let's go back… there's nothing more for us up here…" Narissa said, leaving the bathroom. Ciel nodded subtly, an aching feeling numbing his heart, almost as if he knew this person. He sighed lightly and glanced over at the middle stall which was pitch black inside. Narissa called from the stairs and he glanced to the exit before hesitantly leaving the stain in the girl's bathroom.

While wandering back downstairs, Ciel and Narissa gasped in surprise, freezing as they watched the apparition of a little girl walk into the infirmary. They both looked at each other in shock before nodding, nervously walking to the infirmary door before stepping inside, giddy laughter coming from within.

"Ah yes, I have a sister… yes she is very dear to me and I'm trying to find her… Ha-ha, ah yes, she is actually my twin, only 5 minutes younger than I… she is very sweet, but very shy as well… I think you would like her company as much as I do…" a male voice spoke inside, followed by the giggling of children, but no other voices.

Narissa and Ciel stepped inside and looked on in shock.

"MATHIAS!?" they shouted in unison, running over to him, examining him closely to see if he was alright.

Mathias casually ignored them as he continued conversing with the female spirits. Ciel stepped forward. "Mathias! Hey!? Come on, snap out of it! You have to come with us!" he demanded sternly.

Narissa bit her lip, "Mathias come on, we have to go! You can't stay with these spirits! We can search for Mariella ok?" she pleaded. At the sound of his beloved sister's name he turned to them, finally acknowledging their arrival and pleads.

"Ciel… Narissa…? You… you do not understand… These kids… they really aren't bad…" he said with a frown, obviously taking pity upon the children. Ciel and Narissa looked on with a mixture of confusion and shock, making him sigh as he held out a ripped article, "they have just had some very bad things happen to them…"

Ciel and Narissa looked over the article carefully.

_Heavenly post  
'Four Children Abducted – Follow-up Report'  
The brutal, shocking deaths of the recent kidnapped grade-schoolers have now been traced back to the hands of the instructor found in the room with them. The scissors he held are confirmed to have been used to cut out the victims' tongues, ultimately leading to death through excessive bleeding or choking. One of the victims even had the majority of her head slowly and methodically removed. This cranial mass was found on the floor next to her body. The Heavenly Host Elementary students pictured here are the four who were found in that basement room. Of these children, one was ... When investigators arrived at the scene of the crime. She was ... blood ..._

The newspaper was torn at that point with the bottom half of the article missing. The pictures included with the article match the ghosts perfectly, including the male apparition that had previously chased them.

Narissa's and Ciel's eyes widened in shock, both of them not knowing how to react to what they had just seen. Mathias sighed, "These children… they're not bad… hell… they kind of remind of my dear… innocent sister…" he said with a nostalgic smile.

"No! We can find the REAL Mariella! Mathias, please… come with us!" Narissa pleaded, Ciel at her side. Mathias blinked in surprise and nodded slowly, getting to his feet. He was then, suddenly stopped.

Mathias was lifted from the ground and left suspended in mid air, the ghost girls laughing madly. Narissa and Ciel gasped reaching for him, but some supernatural force stopped them from getting to him. They fled the room in defeat.

"Dammit!" Ciel scowled in disgust. Narissa sighed hopelessly, on the brink of tears. Worry flooded over both of them.

"_Hello."_

They both gasped again in surprise, turning to the source of the voice.

A girl with grayish black hair stood before them with eyes that resembled a dead fish behind her red- rimmed glasses. She was a high schooler, dressed in uniform, but obviously deceased. _"You've only just arrived at this school, have you not?"_

Ciel nodded, stepping in front of Narissa protectively, making her blush subtly in surprise. "Yes, have you also been brought here against your will?" he asked, curiously, yet cautiously.

"_Actually I died here quite a while ago. I came here in search of someone very important, you see…"_ she continued bluntly, her expressionless face unchanging.

Narissa stepped out from behind Ciel curiously, "U-um… your name wouldn't happen to be… Naho Saenoki? Would it?" she asked softly.

"…_it is." _She answered bluntly.

Ciel blinked in confusion and Narissa sighed. "She's a famous high school paranormalist known for her work on the paranormal and occultism. Your last article… it was on the Sachiko Ever After charm in the newspaper, correct?"

"_Yes. Though I'm afraid you won't be seeing any more articles from me."_Naho stated in a monotone.

"You said that you came here in search of someone… correct? Not against your own will, but by choice?" Ciel asked curiously, narrowing his eyes in question. "There is a way to even do that?!"

"_Yes… however… that isn't something I can talk about… my apologizes… But… the greater concern right now is your friend, correct?"_ she asked, obviously avoiding the previous subject.

Narissa cut in, a new hope blazing in her eyes, "D-do you have any idea how we can help him?!"

"_Before I died here… I searched high and low for any means of escape. In the process, I learned that these closed spaces were given the form of Heavenly Host Elementary School through the sorrow and agony of its victims. Victims of an incident that occurred long before our time. Four children kidnapped, with broken bodies later found in this very building. Those children are the ones giving shape to this nexus."_

"_But, unfortunately, this place took its toll on me, and I died here before I could make my escape. But the key seems to lie with those children. If they can be put to rest, there just might be a way out of here. Without all that sorrow and agony to sustain them, these closed spaces would start to break down… All this pointless suffering would come to an end, and we would be released from this hell… that's… my theory anyway." _she said with a subtle smile.

"_You have to put them to rest. What they lack is any remorse or regret from the one who killed them. Yes, the murderer is in this school" _Ciel and Narissa froze at the statement, Naho still eerily expressionless. Mathias groaned inside the infirmary. Ciel went to speak, but Naho cut him off.

"_You need to do whatever you can, and do it quickly. If you don't, those two spirits are going to hurt your friend." _She finished, her arms casually crossed over her chest.

Narissa nodded, "Right. First order of business… is finding the killer." She said simply before walking off down the opposite end of the hall. Ciel blinked and rolled his eyes with a huff, looking back at Naho before following Narissa.

They both wandered the school for a while before coming across the severed head of an old festival doll. Even though it was an inanimate object, it somehow found a way to communicate its sole desire. _"Return my body."_

They both looked at each other before taking the head, going deeper into the school once more. Near the janitors closet was the body of antique festival doll without its head. Coincidently, the head they found previously fit on the body perfectly, its voice, high pitched like that of a child yet robotic monotone, becoming clearer.

"_To have killed children so brutally… I was not in my right mind… I did not want them to die… I was scared too… I am actually a good person… I am so sorry… I am so sorry… so very sorry…"_

Ciel and Narissa looked at each other in surprise. Narissa sighed heatedly, "doesn't it piss you off that the doll is practically saying just what we want to hear…" she said, gritting her teeth.

Ciel sighed, "it's better than nothing at all… come on… we have to hurry this to Mathias." He said sternly, leading Narissa back to the infirmary.

Inside, the ghosts were infuriated.

Narissa clutched the doll tightly before stepping in front of the spirits, "Stop, please!" she shouted pleadingly. They froze, watching her curiously as she held the doll out, "please… you need to hear this…" she said softly.

Narissa held the doll out for the children, letting them listen to the penitent spirit within the antique.

"_Maa… eee…. MAAAAAH MEEEE!" _the ghost sobbed harshly.

"You can rest peacefully now, ok? You do not have to keep suffering." Narissa said, smiling softly while still holding the doll out. "The horrible things that happened to you are all in the past. Your loved ones… your parents and friends… they are all waiting for you… so go to them… go to them and let the boy go… let Mathias go…" she asked softly.

The apparitions then began to quake. Narissa's hopeful smile faded, giving way to a look of terror. "… n-no! Wait, p-please no!" she begged, lunging toward Mathias. Ciel gasped and grabbed her arms, pulling her back in fear she would get hurt. She shouted and pulled away, resisting him as Mathias opened his eyes slightly.

"N-Narissa… Ciel… make sure… Mariella… keep her… safe." He pleaded weakly. Just as he finished his request, the spirits left, dragging him with them as he screamed helplessly. The ghosts broke through the infirmary doors and raced out into the hall.

"NO PLEASE! AHHHH-!" _CRASH._

Ciel and Narissa froze in pure shock and terror. Narissa clenched her jaw, throwing the doll to the floor in a fit of rage before running out into the hall in tears, desperate to find Mathias. Ciel's breathing hitched as he stumbled to the door shakily, "N-no way…"

"No way." He jogged down the hall after Narissa, his stomach twisting in worry before he found Narissa on her knees, her breathing hitched as she clutched her head.

"n-no… n-no way…"

At the end of the hall, was a chunky mess of blood and guts slammed at superhuman speeds against the wall violently. Organs, bones and flesh tossed around the gory splatter that fell to the floor in a bloody mess that was once their friend. Narissa panted with shaky breaths, trembling and shivering with wide, wild eyes. Ciel shook his head in disbelief, his eyes wide.

"NO!" Narissa screamed at the top of her lungs, clutching her head tightly, her nails digging into her skull, "I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!" she got to her feet hastily and took off down the hall, Ciel grabbing for her, but missing as she took off with a disoriented and deranged mindset taking over her.

Ciel watched her in disbelief, his breathing shaky. "D-dammit… Narissa!" he called after her. He gulped, heavy footfalls resonating behind him as he clenched his jaw, not taking notice.

"NARISSA!?-"

_BASH._

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Lydia groaned lightly, slowly regaining consciousness. With blurry vision she scanned the room weakly, her eyes slowly adjusting. She wheezed, _"W-what… happened…"_ she thought, blinking slowly, finding the red flame still before her.

"_The shelf feels like it has… gotten lighter…"_ she groaned in pain, pulling herself out from under the cabinet slowly with a yelp of agonizing pain. She got up on her knees, clutching her right arm, the lower half completely dislocated and hanging_._

"_D-dammit… my left arm is definitely broken…"_ she thought with a wince while slowly getting to her feet, "AH!" she yelled, gripping her side with her good hand, panting and wheezing in pain.

The spirit moved in front of her, "_So you're… you're really concerned about the safety and well being of those nobles, are you?"_ he asked curiously, his voice soft and not so stern and angry, _"You are just they're servant no? You have no familial bond with them, nor are you their mother correct?"_

She bit her lip, still panting, "But they are my kids…! I believe I speak for all of the servants in the house of Turner when I say we love our master and all of his friends dearly…" she moaned lightly, "n-never underestimate a Turner maid." She said sternly, the spirit gasping lightly in surprise.

"Now, answer me this! Your little rant earlier suggested that more of my master's friends and him included all came to this place, other than the two with me, correct?" she demanded sternly with a light huff. "Is that true? Were the others all brought here?"

"_Yes… numerous entities joined us here at around the same time. Counting you and the other two, I sense a total of nine in all."_ He finished.

Lydia gasped lightly, a new found hope lighting her up as she nodded sternly, walking shakily to the door while deep in thought, _"I wonder how long I was out for… dammit… Earl Phantomhive… Earl Campden… they must be worried about me… We shouldn't be here. I need to get everyone home… God, please… everyone… stay safe… stay alive…"_

**End of Chapter 3**

**And the story continues, the plot thickens, and more shit continues to hit the fan in this epic adventure~ Be sure to look out for Chapter 4 on October 25****th****!**

**Stay creative my friends~ **


	5. Chapter 4 Her Lady, Replaced

Harsh panting and coughing echoed through the empty halls. Her foot falls were heavy as she fled wildly, her friend right behind her before she stopped, catching her breath while slouched over in her exchange school uniform stained with blood.

"I-I can't take much more of this! W-what the hell is wrong with this school?!" she whimpered helplessly, sobbing through her heavy breaths. "Who was that anyway, a-and why is he here?! If we were struck by a hammer such as that… we would be dead!"

"W-where is Nikolaus…?" she continued, sobbing into her hands helplessly.

"Faye. A lady such as yourself shouldn't be crying so harshly… please my dear…" her friend said, his French accent evident. He extended his hand to her sweetly, which she took graciously.

"Now, do not worry about him ma cherie. He was just here. We shall run into him any moment now, I am sure of it." He said with a soft smile, his dirty blonde hair falling in his coffee brown eyes.

"I-I hate this… I hate this! I-I don't want to die like that!" she said, continuing to sob brokenly, making her friend frown in concern. "Y-you saw it too right, Othello?! Manami's body? Her head… her head was split wide open!" she shouted, her short and wavy chestnut brown hair falling in her face, covering her grey-blue eyes.

"It had to have been from that hammer!" She clutched her head with trembling hands as she shut her eyes tight in an effort to rid her mind of the gruesome memory.

"Do not think about it! Please…" Othello pleaded sadly as she wept, holding her hands over her face. He sighed, running his fingers through his hair while fixing his blood stained uniform. "Dammit… where DID everyone go?!" he asked, pulling at his uniforms jacket.

Faye continued to sob helplessly but then stopped. She froze looking down the hall in shock, pointing with a trembling hand, "u-uh… Othello… look… the hallway… changed…! I-it just… the corridor… grew…" Othello nodded, looking down the end of the hall as his eyes widened, Faye tugging his arm to make him look the other way at the strange hallway.

The familiar, heavy footsteps echoed behind her. Both gasped and looked down the hall. The man was dressed in a midnight black jacket, his skin grey with blood red eyes to match as he swung his hammer around, shouting incomprehensible phrases.

"It's coming, quick!" he shouted, his eyes wild. He shoved Faye forward, begging her to run ahead and as she protested, the heavy hammer met her friends head, shattering the fragile skull inside like glass.

"no a-ah…! NOOO!" Faye's eyes widened as she screamed at the top of her lungs, taking off down the hall as her friend was smashed gruesomely into pieces. She panted heavily, running without direction now the newly opened corridor. She threw herself through the door on the far end, panting wildly as she peered around.

A walkway outside. The path connected the first building to a second. She breathed shakily, looking to the outside world with nothing but forests surrounding the school. She whimpered, rain pouring down heavily over the covered pathway.

Nervously, Faye walked down the pathway toward the entrance of the second building before stopping to look back for her friend. Nothing. She sighed shakily and sadly and turned back to face the entrance. Faye froze.

"_gihh me back my heahh…"_

Faye stepped back, her breathing hitched. The ghost girl, lacking a majority of her head, stepped forward, reaching for Faye. She shook her head frantically and clutched her head, stumbling back.

"u-h-uh… n-no… YAHHHHHH!"

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Isabelle clenched her jaw, sitting at the top of the staircase. She rubbed her face of its tear stains and sniffled, deep in thought…

"_u-uh…. No… n-no… no… no… Octavia… I don't understand… You said we would make it out of here… together…" she clenched her fists, "Why would you do this?! What happened to you?!"_

_Isabelle wept helplessly before the stall door, holding her head in her bloodied hands. Light footsteps found their way to the door and she glanced up, her cheeks stained with tears, fresh and old. _

"_It really is a pity…" _

_She blinked opening her mouth to speak, but was cut off by the high school girl causally standing in the doorway._

"_I'm the… spirit of a girl who died here…" the girl said, stepping closer, speaking in an expressionless monotone. She blinked, "believe your friend was… afflicted… by the curse that holds this school together. Those who are touched by it, slowly lose their minds to it."_

"_However, some people realize this is happening and go to great lengths to prevent it… even taking their own lives. Of course, others just go insane. Sometimes they start hurting people around them. The exact response to this curse varies quite a bit from one person to the next."_

"_However, your friend has taken her life. Because of both of your actions, you are now left here as this space's… this schools… only living occupant… meaning you will live out the rest of your days… and die… all alone in this school…"_

_Isabelle froze at that moment as the girl left as simply as she arrived, leaving Isabelle alone once again._

She sighed and shook her head lightly at the thought of those previous events. With a shaky breath she got to her feet at the top step, getting to her feet tipsily before her injured ankle gave out.

She yelled out, tumbling to the bottom of the stairs as her ankle emanated a sickening and loud crack as she hit the floor below. She grimaced and retched, a hand going to her swelling ankle as her mind raced, _"o-oh god! That crack… Was that my leg?!"_

She retched, feeling the bone pressed against her skin, immediately leaving her ankle to prop herself up on her hands and knees as her stomach knotted. She panted before throwing up harshly as she whined helplessly.

"C-Ciel…! Ciel! I-I need you Ciel! P-please…" she sobbed, covering her face with her hands, "C-Ciel! W-wahhh… M-mother! Mommy! CIEL!" she screamed.

"CIEL!"

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

**Start of Chapter 4**

"You're doing well Miss Adrall… I'm surprised you haven't cried during all this…"

"D-do not underestimate me Earl Turner…" she said with a sniff.

Adrian nodded with a sigh, rubbing the young Baroness's shoulders soothingly as she sniffled innocently, rubbing her eyes sadly.

"_I sense that other corporal beings such as yourselves were brought here as well. Nine in total. Nine poor souls all pulled in at once…"_ spoke a paranormal voice, a blue flame ignited new the teacher's podium at the front of the class.

Adrian nodded, "That sounds like all of us… I guess everyone who performed the charm are all here… dammit!" he shouted, gritting his teeth heatedly.

Mariella gasped lightly, pulling on Adrian's sleeve with hope sparkling in her sky blue eyes, "Mathias! My brother must be here to! We have to find him!" she begged.

"_Not exactly. As I mentioned, this is a nexus of closed spaces. Your friends are scattered among them. So in essence, they are indeed all in this school… but it's not quite the same place for everyone. Meeting anyone else here may be… difficult. If you should attempt to defy the will of this school to find them, you may ultimately invoke its wrath. And that's a fate… best avoided."_

Adrian and Mariella both gasped lightly in surprise, their eyes widened. Adrian sighed shakily, gripping Mariella's petite hand reassuringly, making her blush as he spoke. "We appreciate the warning, but we have to try... We shall do whatever it takes to find everyone and get out of here. Together."

Mariella blushed lightly as his grip on her hand tightened slightly, "Adrian…" she cooed in surprise.

"They're all such good people… They don't deserve this! And I absolutely will not give up on them just because there is some nebulous curse that might strike me back!" Adrian stated with determination in his tone.

"_It's a rarity to find such righteous determination these days. Be sure you do not lose it along the way. Your desire not to let a single person die… Try to retain that noble spirit, no matter what horrors may await. And even if you can't save everyone… you may still be able to alter you fate for the better, even if only by the tiniest of margin… do not end up… like us..."_the spirit pleaded before distinguishing into thin air.

Mariella sighed shakily, "Earl Turner… what do you believe he meant by... the school's wrath?" she asked, biting her lip fearfully.

"I'm not quite sure… I wonder if he was saying the school has a mind of its own or something…? At any rate, we should try Lydia, Mathias and the others as soon as possible. And we need to get you home as well Milady. If a chance comes up, I want you to take it, alright?" he said with a soft smile.

"There must be some sort of an entranceway or emergency exit we can use or… some means of getting outside… And if so, you must go home, alright?" he said sternly, poking the tip of her nose teasingly, making her blush in surprise.

With a soft smile, Adrian helped her to her feet and led her from the classroom into the hallway. The two wandered the halls before coming to classroom 2-A. Adrian led a skittish Mariella inside the classroom and then froze.

"A-AHH!" Adrian screamed, squeezing Mariella's hand, making her yelp and wince in a mixture of surprise and pain.

"O-Ow! Earl Turner w-what are you- EEK!" she screamed, following his gaze. A fresh corpse lay sprawled out on the classroom, coated with drying crimson. Adrian blinked in shock, then shook his head, clearing his mind.

"M-Miss Mariella! Do not look!" he pleaded, covering her eyes with his hand, making her yelp and whimper again in surprise as her body began to tremble.

He gritted his teeth, looking back at the body with wide eyes, _"there is no way that is a prop of some sort… its really real… So… this is… really happening, isn't it… A dead body… an actual dead body… Am I going to end up like this as well? Are we really all going to die here?" _

"Earl Turner!" Mariella shouted, raising her voice slightly yet innocently. Adrian blinked, looking back at her. He uncovered his hand from her eyes with one arm wrapped around her waist, making her blush. He sighed.

"Come on, Milady… let us get out of this room…" he said softly, rubbing her back reassuringly. Mariella glanced down at the rapidly decomposing corpse. A message was painstakingly carved into the floorboards in front of the corpse.

"_KILL ME PLEASE KILL ME PLEASE KILL ME PLEASE KILL ME PLEASEKILLME"_

"_CANT TAKE ANYMORE CANT TAKE ANYMORE CANTTAKEANYMORE"_

"_Let me out!" _a desperate voice echoed, making Adrian and Mariella scream in fear and surprise. Adrian shook his head, leading Mariella from the room frantically as she whimpered. He sighed shakily, his mind racing as he dragged the blonde girl into the hall, as far away from the voice as possible.

Mariella whimpered and sobbed lightly, burying her head in Adrian's chest making him blush in surprise, "M-Mariella, what are you-"

"W-Will we ever be able to g-go home a-again Earl Turner?" She wept helplessly, making him frown worriedly. Adrian rubbed her back soothingly with a sigh, letting her cry. He hummed lightly, holding her closely and reassuringly.

"Miss Mariella… I promise… we'll get out of here- all of us. Including Mathias." He said softly yet sternly. She nodded, wiping her eyes with a whimper. Adrian then cupped her face gently, wiping her tears away with his thumbs, making her blush with an adorable 'eh' of surprise.

He smiled and took her hand again, leading her through the halls once more before stopping, taking notice of a passing figure. His eyes widened as he watched the apparition of a girl walk down the hall, her body covered in a tattered red dress with matted black hair to match.

Mariella whimpered and hid behind him shyly and fearfully, taking notice of the ghost, making her shudder. Adrian gulped and rubbed her shoulders reassuringly.

"I-it's ok… she's gone now… do not worry…" He said with a soft smile, leading her away. She nodded slowly and followed him obediently. Mariella rolled a tiny bottle in the palm of her free hand, her other hand clutching Adrian's.

"What do you have there?" he asked curiously. He took notice and smiled at the innocent girl, making her jump slightly in surprise as she clutched the bottle of beads in her hand.

"Well… it is my good luck charm… my brother gave it to me when I was little… he has a matching one with the same scented beads as well. Want to take a look?" she asked sweetly, setting it in his palm gently.

He smiled and opened the bottle, smelling the scented beads. He chuckled, "Caramel eh? It smells like Funtom candy too." He said with a smile, making her giggle and nod.

"You should hold onto it…" she said, getting in front of him while setting it in his hand sweetly, making him blink in surprise before glancing at her. She smiled softly at him, lacing her fingers behind her back. "Keep it…"

"W-What? Milady… I can do no such thing… you should hold onto it alright?" he said with a smile, handing it back. She stuck her hands out in front of her, shaking her head.

"No! Please… keep it…" she pleaded with a subtle frown. "you can be so scattered brained sometimes… I do not want you to be scared… because then… I shall be scared…" she said, her frown deepening.

He sighed in return, "Alright… ill take good care of it then." He said with a wink, making her smile and nod confidently. He chuckled lightly and continued down the hall to a stair case. Both stopped, Mariella yelping at the sight of another corpse down the hall.

Adrian sighed, noticing a note in the young girl's bony hand. He took the note, Mariella reading it over his shoulder quietly.

"_William… William, I'm so sorry… If only I hadn't discovered that stupid charm…"_

Adrian sighed deeply, placing the note back in the skeleton's hand. Mariella tugged on his sleeve, pointing to a poster adorning the wall, her petite hand trembling. Adrian glanced over, reading said poster.

"_You missed the final bell. You missed the end of school. If you're still here… then you always will be."_

Mariella frowned worriedly and Adrian gulped, leading her away once again, deeper into the halls of the school. They both wandered the second floor before stopping, noticing the apparition of a young boy, seated over a hole in the floor. Mariella clutched Adrian's hand, squeezing it for reassurance as they walked past the ghost.

"_Why ihh you kihh me?... Youhh pay…"_

Adrian hurriedly led Mariella away from the apparition as it stood, however, the boy showed no means of following them. Therefore, they continued their search up to the girls and boys bathrooms. The boys bathroom was sealed shut with boards, making it inaccessible.

"A-Adrian…?" Mariella, once again, tugged on Adrian's shirt, biting her lip. He turned to her with a soft smile.

"What is it Miss Mariella?" he asked sweetly, making her blush as she shifted uncomfortably where she stood. "What is wrong? He tilted his head in question.

"I-I have to… use the restroom…" she said softly, her blush growing redder. Adrian blinked then nodded in understanding, gesturing to the girls room. She nodded, walking in slowly and nervously.

Adrian sighed, his arms crossed over his chest as he waited for her to return, which she did quickly. He blinked and smiled, "You are done already?" he asked with a light chuckle.

"I-I couldn't go…" she said, twiddling her fingers as he blinked in surprise.

"Huh?" He walked past her into the bathroom and peered around. The floors in front of each stall had collapsed, making every stall inaccessible. He sighed irritably as he walked back out to meet her. She frowned innocently and guiltily. He smiled softly and set his hand on her head, ruffling the blonde locks lightly, "Do not worry… we'll find you another bathroom. Would be nice if the boy's restroom was at least an option though…" he said with a sigh, leading her back downstairs.

Adrian and Mariella slowly made their way past the apparition, who was just where they had left him. But then they froze.

The boy groaned in pain and then hissed at them in warning, getting to his feet. Adrian glanced over and his eyes met the ghost's eyes, locking their gaze.

"_Come wihh me…"_

"E-Earl Turner?!" Mariella cried as he stepped onto the crumbling floor boards. Adrian seemed to be set in a trance as his body moved forward on its own. He continued forward, the unsteady floorboards creaking under his weight.

"Adrian!" she shouted. In surprise, he lost his footing and tripped, making her gasp. The bottle of beads she had given him fell from his pocket, the apparition immediately taking notice as he stalked over to the tiny bottle.

The boy picked up the bottle curiously and sniffed the scented beads within with genuine interest as he groaned again. Mariella bit her lip, gesturing for Adrian to come back as he regained control of his body.

He jogged back and joined Mariella who instantly embraced him. He gasped lightly in surprise as she held him close, sobbing into his chest. He narrowed his eyes slightly and wrapped her arms around her affectionately as the boy disappeared with the tiny bottle of beads.

After she had cried, she wiped her eyes innocently and he led her back downstairs. They walked down an usually dark corridor and ended up in the infirmary. Adrian led Mariella into the room and noticed some beds.

"They are a lot less dusty than I would have imagined…" he said with a smile. Mariella nodded as Adrian helped her onto the bed. She crawled over to the second bed in the corner and patted the bed next to her. Adrian blinked and nodded slowly, climbing into bed with the blonde Baroness.

She moved next to him and he wrapped his arm around her sweetly yet protectively as she snuggled her head under his chin. They lay silent for a while before she spoke softly.

"Adrian… do you… think we will find a way home…?" she asked curiously, yet hopelessly. He sighed.

"Yes… I do… once we find everyone; I promise, we'll find a way out. Hell, I bet they are doing the same as us, looking for their own exit. So after we rest up we'll get back to it so we do not look like slackers when they find us, alright?" he said with a wink. She cracked a smile and nodded before slowly drifting off to sleep, his head resting on hers affectionately.

He sighed deeply with a subtle frown, closing his eyes while deep in thought. _"We can't open a window, let alone get outside… I've been giving her empty promises, all paper thin… empty words… but, I guess those words… are the only thing driving us forward at this point… giving us a reason to escape… to live… All we can do is tell ourselves we shall find a way out, and pray that it actually happens…"_

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

"n-nng… a-ah!" Adrian gasped, sitting up abruptly with a shaky sigh, _"Dammit… I must have nodded off… What am I doing?! This is no time to be sleeping…" _he sighed again.

"Adrian? What is it?" Mariella tilted her head in question, groaning lightly and sleepily while sitting up slowly and rubbing her eyes. He sighed and shook his head getting off the bed.

"this isn't home…" Mariella said sadly before sobbing into her hands. Adrian frowned and pulled her legs off the bed so she could face him. He set his hands gently on her thighs, rubbing them reassuringly as she sniffled and looked down at him with a bright blush.

As they went to leave the infirmary, Mariella took notice of an article laying on the floor, which had ot been there when they had previously arrived. The two walked over to it. Adrian picked it up and read it, Mariella once again reading over his shoulder.

_Heavenly post  
'Four Children Abducted – Follow-up Report'  
The brutal, shocking deaths of the recent kidnapped grade-schoolers have now been traced back to the hands of the instructor found in the room with them. A large pair of sewing scissors were found in his possession and these were confirmed to have been used in removing the victims' tongues, ultimately leading to death through excessive bleeding or choking. One of the victims even had the majority of her head slowly and methodically removed. This cranial mass was found on the floor next to her body. Of these children, one was ... When investigators arrived at the scene of the crime. She was ... but somehow..._

The bottom half of the article appeared to be missing, as the paper was torn at that point.

"Come Mariella… we should start searching again, alright?" He said somewhat sternly. She nodded and took his hand again reassuringly. He sighed and led her to the door before they both stopped.

"_I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!" _

"That was Narissa's voice!" Adrian gasped. He gritted his teeth, hurriedly leading Mariella into the hall before they stopped again and gasped in shock. A fresh trail of blood was just outside the door of the infirmary, most likely formed from someone being dragged harshly along the floorboards at fast speeds.

Mariella gulped, averting her eyes from the red stain. Adrian sighed shakily, finding no other changes around the hall. He narrowed his eyes, leading her away from the scene as her body trembled lightly. He pulled her closer, his arm wrapped around her waist as they continued aimlessly wandering the halls. But then they stopped again.

The sound of scribbling echoed down the hall. Adrian gulped and slowly approached with Mariella who began to quake more harshly. The scribbling got louder and louder before they noticed a figure, quickly sketching something in a notepad.

"Tobias!?" Adrian and Mariella called, running up to him as the brunette turned in surprise, stopping his sketch. Mariella and Tobias's hopeful smiles soon gave way to looks of terror as they turned the corner, noticing the horrific scene Tobias had hurriedly sketched with every gruesome detail.

At the end of the hall, was a chunky mess of blood and guts slammed at superhuman speeds against the wall violently. Organs, bones and flesh tossed around the gory splatter that fell to the floor in a bloody mess that once all used to work together as a living, breathing person.

Mariella's breathing hitched as she screamed looking away quickly while clutching her head, her body trembling. Adrian stepped back; his breathing hitched as well as Tobias frowned, hiding his sketchbook behind his back.

"It is an awful sight, isn't it? Seems like pulverized human remains to me. I believe it is a male's corpse… But… that is a mere speculation." He said, his tone eerily calm. "At any rate, it is a relief to see someone from the party… I haven't seen anyone since I woke up in this hell. I assume it is the same for you?"

Adrian nodded slowly while taking a shaky breath, trying to stay calm for Mariella's sake. "Yes, we have not seen anyone since we arrived either… How about we go look for everyone together?" he asked, glancing at the pile of meat nervously.

"That will not be necessary. If we split up, it will be easier to find everyone…" Tobias replied, his tone almost a creepy monotone. Adrian nodded slowly, helping Mariella to his feet.

"Alright… let's designate classroom 1A as our rendezvous point." He said, holding Mariella in an attempt to comfort the crying girl.

"Sounds like a plan…" Tobias replied simply, walking off into the halls without another word. Adrian frowned in concern, rubbing Mariella's arms soothingly as she wiped her eyes.

"H-he was… w-why…" she shook her head, trying to clear her mind of the event, making Adrian frown worriedly again. He sighed and took her hand, leading her away from the carcass and deeper into the school as well.

While walking through the halls, Mariella froze, her gaze concentrated down one hall. Adrian stopped, taking notice and went to speak, but followed her gaze with wide eyes. One of the hallways had changed, becoming bigger with a single door at the end of the corridor.

They immediately ran down the hall and pulled at the door. It was locked. Adrian cursed under his breath, pulling at the handle again as Mariella sighed, noticing a corpse by the door. She knelt down next to it and noticed a small key lying by its bony hand. Thoughts echoed in her head.

"_Chiho… Nana… Please be okay…. I'm sorry I am so… I'm so useless…"_

She gulped and stood up, presenting the key to Adrian who smiled and took it, trying it on the door. It opened. The two smiled at each other before racing outside the door, thunder booming and rain pouring just beyond the door.

"Damn… it's freezing out here…" Adrian said, shivering slightly as Mariella clutched onto him in an attempt to get warm. He glanced around. The walkway joining the two buildings was covered with scaffolding above, the walkway lined with fencing that could easily be hopped. The whole school also appeared to be completely surrounding by a never ending forest.

Adrian sighed and curiously yet cautiously led Mariella down the pathway and into the second building. Both stopped, immediately noticing the atmosphere becoming thicker as they stepped into the new building.

Adrian sighed, glancing back at the doors. "You really shouldn't hold it in you know… It isn't healthy… why don't you just go quickly in the woods alright? I shall await you return in here." He said with a soft smile. Mariella nodded slowly before reluctantly heading back out into the rain.

"_Can I really get over this fence…?"_ she thought, narrowing her eyes while trying to lift herself over the railing. Suddenly, the doors on the opposite end of the hall where thrown open. She gasped, getting off the railing while backing up toward the second building's entrance.

The apparition of a young girl stalked toward her. Mariella yelled heading back inside frantically before the ghost could catch her. She panted and looked around, tears welling up in her eyes as fear washed over her.

"A-Adrian…?" she peered around, straightening up. "Adrian! Where are you?!" her eyes widened, "N-no… ADRIAN! W-Where did you go?! C-Come back! P-Please…" she sobbed, wandering the school while calling for her friend helplessly.

She wandered up to the second floor and heard the familiar sounds of scribbling. She peeked into one hall and her eyes widened as she gasped in fear.

Tobias stood over the corpse of a high school girl, dressed in a proper plaid uniform. Her short and wavy chestnut brown hair fell in her face, covering her grey-blue eyes and blood stained forehead. He was creating an extremely detailed sketch of the corpse, just as he did with the pulverized body. He turned, noticing her.

"Miss Mariella. What are you doing here?" he asked simply, turning to her while shutting his sketch book. She shivered, stuttering incomprehensible phrases. He narrowed his eyes in question, stepping closer to her.

"You're shaking! Where is Earl Turner? Is he not with you anymore?" he asked worriedly, coming even closer. Mariella bit her lip and shook her head, crying again, making Tobias's frown deepen. "You poor thing… Let me help you find the Earl, alright?"

"N-No… I… I can find him… by myself…" she said, trying to be stern. However, Tobias stepped closer, undeterred by her words. She whimpered and backed away toward the exit. A painfully wide smirk stretched across Tobias's face making Mariella gasp lightly as she ran off, the brunette stalking after her while chuckling darkly and madly.

She panted as she ran, desperately trying to escape the deranged Earl. Then, she gasped. "AH!"

_BASH. _She opened her eyes carefully and was staring into the eyes of a man who blinked down at her in confusion. He held her forearms gently and tilted his head. His black hair fell in front of his emerald green eyes

"Are you alright Miss?" he asked curiously, releasing her arms as she nodded, twiddling her fingers nervously. He frowned, "are you all alone in her Milady?" he asked, stepping up to her to examine her closely.

"Y-Yes… M-My name is Mariella… I-I got separated from my friend a-and I'm trying to find him…" she said softly as he cupped one of her cheeks, making her blush lightly as he smirked.

"Is that so? I am trying to find one of my comrades as well… My name is Yuuya Kizami, it is a pleasure Miss Mariella." He said politely, kissing her knuckles sweetly before releasing her hand, "Would you care to accompany me on my search? If so, I would be glad to help you find your friend as well…"

She nodded slowly, "I w-would appreciate it greatly, Kizami…" she cooed softly. He nodded with a subtle smirk before leading her around the second building. Not long after, they passed a girl's restroom which was completely covered in protection charms of all sorts. Mariella bit her lip at the sight, shifting uncomfortably.

"Miss Mariella? Are you alright?" Kizami asked curiously as he stopped, taking notice of her odd behavior.

"I-I have to use the bathroom…" she said softly, shutting her eyes.

"Ah! Really? How long have you been holding it? No matter… you can go in here. It is not healthy to hold it in my dear." He said sweetly, opening the bathroom door for her while tearing the charms away in the process. She nodded, heading inside hurriedly, closing the doors behind her.

Kizami sighed, waiting patiently outside for her to finish, his arms crossed over his chest with his uniform jacket slung over his shoulder neatly. He hummed lightly before stopping, turning to a figure that stepped through the door.

"Kizami?!" the boy called, stepping toward Kizami in disbelief.

"Nikolaus! You're alive?!" he shouted in return, going to his friend who smiled brightly. Nikolaus chuckled lightheartedly.

"As are you my friend! Man, you're a sight for sore eyes… Finally, someone who is not dead in this godforsaken place. I was just about at my wits end with this place. I was going to attempt to brave the forest; however, there doesn't seem to be an end to the damn thing! He said, running his fingers through his short brunette hair in thought.

"I think we may be stuck here for good. There is no way out for, any of us." Kizami said bluntly. Nikolaus sighed and frowned in thought.

"Faye… did you see her…? In the next room… she is… dead…" he said sadly. Kizami nodded quietly, rubbing his face with one hand in thought. Nikolaus breathed out a laugh.

"I remember… just yesterday Faye ended her relationship with that British tradesman… the rich one… He was cheating on her with 3 other women. She was so down about it all morning… I did such silly gestures trying to cheer her up… I think I actually lifted her spirits a little… but now…" he sighed shakily, rubbing his face as Kizami watched him with wide eyes. Nikolaus went to continue, but was suddenly cut off.

_Drip. Drip. Drip. _

"E-Eh…? K-Kizami… w-what are you?! K-KIZAMI!"

Kizami sighed shakily, pushing his knife deeper into Nikolaus's torso as he retched, trying to pull away. Kizami laughed madly, pulling the knife out as Nikolaus stumbled back in utter disbelief as his torso gushed blood onto his uniform jacket.

Before he could scream for help, Kizami pushed him back into a hole through the floorboards. He screamed and was suddenly silenced.

_CRASH._ Kizami chuckled darkly, clutching his red stained knife tightly.

"In this world… it does not matter if those child spirits kill you… or if I kill you. Either way… you are dead." A painfully wide smirk stretched over his face as his pupils dilated. He began to chuckle darkly, looking toward the bathroom door, Mariella just inside.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

"n-nng… a-ah… Mariella…?"

Adrian sat up in his half awake state, rubbing his eyes while looking around a cluttered room. His eyes widened.

"Mariella?! Where are you!? MARIELLA?!" he screamed, getting to is feet shakily. He looked around desperately and gulped, clutching his head. There was no sign of her, nor any response. He glanced around and took notice of an article lying next to a cassette. He knelt down and read the article, taking the cassette.

_[Strange But True: Stories Of The Occult]_

_Chasing Down The Hidden Past Of The Cursed School Building (-It Really Exists!)_

_By Kou Kibiki_

He narrowed his eyes, reading it carefully. "According to this article, one girl survived the murders… but if this photograph is correct… it is the same girl in the red dress we saw earlier… but if she did not die… why is she haunting the school…?" He sighed irritably and got to his feet, leaving the article where it was.

He headed toward the door and pulled at it. Locked. He cursed under his breath, leaning his head against the door quietly in defeat.

"_To worry so much for another's wellbeing that it torments you to the core… It's an exquisite stigmata that afflicts the dead and living alike…"_

Adrian jumped in surprise turning to the girl quickly._ "I… am the spirit of a girl who died here." _She said simply, moving her hair from her grey, cloudy eyes, _"Happiness and unhappiness are linked. Whenever one attempts to gain good fortune with little effort, there is always a risk."_

"_You and your friends have become trapped in this school because you performed the Sachiko Ever After charm… and messed it up. One of you chanted the phrase one too many times or too few. The number of participants determines the number of repetitions that must be spoken. And somebody goofed." _She said with a soft yet eerie smile.

Adrian gasped, his eyes wide, "N-no way…."

"_It may have been on purpose. One of your friends probably thought the whole thing was silly, and just did not even bother to count. Or maybe a misguided member of your group did not want the fun to end, and knowingly flubbed the charm in a vain attempt at prompting a do-over."_

"_Even if it was not on purpose, some of your friends have a tendency to not take things very seriously, no? It is not inconceivable that they would mess up… and just say, 'Oh well! It is not like I shall ever be found out!'… Without realizing their actions would ultimately damn you all to this hell!"_ she giggled eerily, making Adrian's skin crawl as he listened in utter shock.

"_No one has owned up to it, right? Not as single one of your friends has said to you, 'I screwed up! I am so very sorry!'"_

"Shut the hell up already!" Adrian demanded, gritting his teeth. He clenched his fists, stepping closer to the girl lividly as she giggled carelessly.

"_My apologizes. I've proposed far to many likely scenarios, it seems. Perhaps it is the nature of my job. I have long since abandoned my writings, after all. You do… still have your scrap of the paper doll, no? Be sure you hang onto that, and hang on tight. Treat it like a memento. A memento… of those who are dear to you." _

"I hate to interrupt… but I must be going. I became separated with a dear friend of mine and I have to get back to her." Adrian said sternly as he frowned worriedly over Mariella.

"_Such concern for your friends… all on the impulses that go with it, spurring the heart into action… it's truly a noble sentiment. That is all charms really are, you know. They represent one's regards for other people. They are like microcosms of the soul… Whether it be love or hate, all you need is a truly strong emotion to set them off. The stronger it is, the more powerful the charm." _A smirk stretched across her face.

"H-hey?! What are you-?!" Adrian's eyes widened, _"I'm burning up! The hell is going on?! It feels like my body is on fire!"_He shut his eyes, pleading with the girl as she chanted a strange incantation.

"_We will not allow anyone to stand in our way. Those who do will suffer without mercy. Now go. Go to the one who occupies your thoughts… though you probably will not make it in time!" _she stated, giggling madly.

**End of Chapter 4**

**I AM SO SORRY IT'S LATE! ;-; forgive me, I wasn't able to post this yesterday, but hey better late than never. Only 2 chapters to go! Be sure to look out for Chapter 5 on October 28****th****!**

**Stay creative my friends~ **


	6. Chapter 5 Her Lady, Murderer

H"N-nng… Where…? Uh… Elle? …. Mariella?"

Mathias groaned, sitting up slowly against a wall, clutching his throbbing head.

"The hell happened… Mariella?! Where are you?!" he shouted, getting to his feet shakily. He looked around frantically. "Hey! Anyone out there!?"

He sighed shakily, _"God… where even IS here… I cannot succumb to panic… I have to find Mariella… someone… anyone! I just need to stay calm… eh?"_ Mathias reached into his suit jacket's breast pocket, feeling around inside, then his eyes widened.

"_Dammit! My piece of paper… for the charm… it's gone! I-I must have lost it when I passed out… dammit all…What happened after that earthquake…"_He sighed irritably then froze. Giggles echoed down the hall, slowly getting louder and closer.

He cursed under his breath and ducked behind a wall, peeking out slowly. The apparitions of two, young girls skipped down the hall, giggling carelessly as they entered the infirmary just across the hall from where he hid.

After they went inside the room, he stepped out, his eyes narrowed, _"What... were they? They went into this room… Maybe… maybe I should have a look…"_he sighed shakily, before stepping inside the room, giggling resonating from within.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

**Start of Chapter 5**

"n-nng… w-what…?"

Adrian opened his eyes slightly, blinking back into consciousness as he sat up in the middle of the hallway.

"huh…"

He rubbed his eyes, looking around. The school around him was completely different from where he just was. He shakily got to his feet, holding his throbbing head. He looked around, stumbling down the hall with one thought echoing in his head.

"'_Go to the one who occupies your thoughts…' huh…? 'You probably will not make it in time'… what did she mean… was she talking about…?" _He shook his head, clearing his head while heading to the third floor bathrooms. He stopped, a familiar voice echoing around him.

"_Go to her Adrian… Isabelle… cannot hold on much longer… she is indeed on the verge of snapping…"_

He gasped lightly in surprise and continued forward. Two familiar female voices echoed from inside the girl's bathroom. Adrian held his breath, hesitantly going inside while deep in thought, _"Those voices… Isabelle…? Octavia…?"_

"Hello…? Is anyone in here…?" Adrian called, only his own echoing returning. He huffed lightly, walking over to the stalls, deep in thought, _"These stalls… Mariella…"_ He pulled at the doors of each stall, none showing any sign of opening. He sighed and was ready to leave the bathroom before he noticed a strange sound.

He turned back, looking to the middle stall before stepping in front of it. He pulled it again. Something heavy was leaning up against the door, following by thrashing and choking. His eyes widened as he backed up.

He narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth, kicking the door open with all his might. The door swung open, hitting whatever, or whoever, was inside. His eyes widened in surprise as he froze in place.

"N-no…" he shook his head frantically, "ISABELLE?!"

"A-Adr…ian… h-he… p… me…" Isabelle choked and retched, pulling at the rope around her neck as it dug into her neck. He gasped and shook his head again, rushing into the stall.

"H-Hold on, Miss Isabelle! I'll get you down- u-um…!" he shouted, pulling at her to get her down. Tears welled up in her already glazed azure eyes. He gasped and cursed under his breath, stopping as she thrashed helplessly.

"u-um! Oh! Here!" Adrian rushed inside and hoisted her up on his shoulders quickly. She exhaled quickly and panted heavily, making Adrian sigh in relief.

"Now for the… rope…" he breathed, holding her up steadily as she panted heavily. Somehow or another, while fidgeting with the knot, Adrian managed to loosen it, even though he couldn't actually see what he was doing. Isabelle slouched forward as the noose was loosened. She coughed, clutching Adrian's shoulders as he helped her down.

"Miss Isabelle?! Hey, are you alright?!" he asked, his voice shaking worriedly as he shook her body slightly. She cracked open her eyes with a groan before coughing, her neck bruised purple where the rope had been. He sighed again in relief with a smile before he froze.

Isabelle embraced him, sobbed weakly, "Idiot… get here sooner next time…" she sniffled, sobbing in his chest as she hugged him tighter. His eyes widened slightly as he carefully wrapped his arms around her. He rubbed her back slowly and soothingly, letting her cry all she needed.

Eventually, Isabelle released him and wiped her eyes, "M-my apologizes for acting so out of line, Earl Turner…" she said with a light whimper. He shook his head.

"Do not apologize… you have been through a lot, I'm sure… How is your neck?" he asked with a sigh, rubbing her shoulder lightly. She blinked, wiping her cheeks again of any stray tears.

"I-it feels weird… what was I doing…?" she asked curiously, rubbing her neck with one hand as Adrian narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"Wait, you do not know what happened to you…?" he asked.

"No… I remember… I fell down the stairs and blacked out… and then when I came to… you were here…" she said softly, rubbing her arm in thought. He nodded, thinking deeply before sighing.

"Well… I heard Octavia's voice a while ago I believe… any idea where she went?" he asked curiously. Isabelle froze, her breathing hitching at the sound of Octavia's name. Adrian frowned in concern. "What is it…?" he asked worriedly, his frown deepening as Isabelle's body began to tremble.

"O-Octavia… s-she… L-let me just... show you…" Isabelle said with her voice shaky and hoarse. He blinked in surprise as she got to her feet, wobbling slightly. She stumbled out of the stall and stepped out in front of the middle stall before prying the doors open.

Adrian's eyes widened as Octavia's already decomposing corpse flopped out of the stall and into view with a sickening flop. Adrian's hands flew up to his mouth as he gulped, the carcass crawling with maggots, many of the bugs grouping in the coagulating blood of her orifices and the main cut.

Isabelle gulped, covering her glazed eyes with her brunette bangs as Adrian sighed shakily, averting his gaze from the horrid sight. He shook his head lightly before walking over to Isabelle, taking her hand as he walked past her to the door. She blushed in surprise.

"I'm sorry… you had to see that… go through that all alone Miss Isabelle… I-I cannot believe Octavia…" he gulped again, leading her into the hall near the stairwell. She nodded, tucking some of her hair behind her ear.

"We got in a fight… I said so many horrible things to her… We both split up after that… because I was too stubborn to apologize…" her lip began to quiver, "I-I'll never get to apologize f-for hurting her… never… O-Octavia… all I wanted was… for all of us… to get out of here… a-and go home t-together…" she gulped, choking back her tears.

"Isabelle… I-I … I'm so sorry…" Adrian said with a frown, "But… if it means anything… I do not believe Octavia was in her right of mind when she was killed… Like you, she was most likely in some sort of trance… maybe because of this school's curse…" he finished, narrowing his eyes in thought.

"Eh? The curse? A-and what do you mean 'like me?'" Isabelle asked curiously, wiping her eyes as she listened with genuine interest. He sighed.

"The curse of this school… can drive people insane, however the effects of the curse varies from person to person… People aren't usually aware of what they are doing, or they are… and take their own life before anyone can get hurt… You do not remember trying to hang yourself, correct?" he asked, tilting his head in question. She shook her head.

"Well… I don't think Octavia knew what happened either… so… do not blame yourself Milady." He said with a soft smile. She nodded, deep in thought before speaking.

"Adrian… the spirit of a high school girl informed Octavia and I that we were the only living occupants in this space… so… how did you get here?" she asked curiously yet cautiously. He froze, his eyes widening slightly as his mind began to race.

"… I'm not quite sure…" he said simply, running his fingers through his hair while deep in thought,_ "__'__Go to the one who occupies your thought'… 'You probably will not make it in time'… did she mean…?"_

"A-actually… I also came in contact with the ghost of a high school girl… I think she… was the one who brought me here… I must be in a new space then…" he sighed before his eyes widened in realization, "Mariella… I-I… we have to find her! I was just with her in the second wing when we got separated, so she couldn't have gone far." He stated, going to the stairwell.

Isabelle nodded, following after him down the stairs carefully yet quickly. She followed him down the halls before tripping over her own two feet, coming down with a crash and a yelp. He turned back in surprise, going to her side immediately.

"M-Miss Isabelle?! A-Are you alright?!" he asked worriedly, sitting her up so he could examine her quickly.

"Y-yes… I just tripped… m-my leg is in rough shape…" she said with a groan as her vision began to blur, "a-and now… everything is… spinning… and turning… white…" she finished before her eyes rolled back into her head as she slouched in his arms.

"I-Isabelle?!" he shouted, his eyes wide as he cursed under his breath, _"… dammit… she lost consciousness… I need to get her somewhere safe… I do believe there is a nurse's office somewhere around here…_

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Isabelle lay unconscious, yet peaceful in one bed in the infirmary, Adrian sitting on it at her feet. He sighed softly, moving some hair from her face with a soft smile.

"_At least her breathing is normal… that's a good sign, definitely… I guess she is ok."_ He sighed again, climbing off the bed while stretching his arms with a huff.

"I need to go find Mariella. Isabelle… please stay here and rest up… I know it is dangerous for either of us to be by ourselves but… that goes for everyone else as well. I can't just ignore her. I'll return soon, I promise…" he said softly, reluctantly exiting the infirmary to wander the halls once more.

He eventually found his way to where the enlarged hallway was located. He jogged forward, wanting to find Mariella in order to return to Isabelle as soon as possible. But, soon, he stopped dead in his tracks.

"N-no way…" he approached the walkway's location, his eyes wide in disbelief. "N-no way!" he shouted, pounding his fist against the wall. The large hallway had disappeared without a trace.

"I-it's… not here… w-why is there… a wall here…? The other building… w-what the hell is going on?! Why must you torment me like this?! Mariella….! MARIELLA?!"

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

"Ha… ha... ha-ha-ha…"

Kizami chuckled madly to himself, clutching his head with one hand, tangling his fingers roughly in his black locks before a scream rang out. Mariella fled the girls bathroom and dropped to her knees by the wall, holding her head as her body trembled.

"Mariella… what is the matter?" he asked, approaching her slowly, his head tilted to the side in question as she whimpered. She pointed a trembling hand to the bathroom.

"T-they are all… o-occupied…" she gulped, shutting her eyes tightly. He raised an eyebrow, gazing into the bathroom before causally heading inside to investigate. He peeked at all of the stalls and blinked in surprise.

"W-What the hell!? Who did this?! Or… did they… do it themselves…?" he gritted his teeth, stepping back. A noose hung inside each stall, all supporting their victims as the bodies swung slowly back and forth, occasionally bumping into the stall door, announcing their presence inside.

"A great many lives ended in this room…" he thought aloud, approaching the exit. He clutched his head again, "ha… hua… ha-ha… ha-ha-aha-ha…!" he laughed, completely deranged as he stumbled out of the bathroom to Mariella's side, who looked up at him with wide, fearful eyes.

"Poor little Mariella… With all those bodies in there, you will never be able to relieve yourself! … Well then… heh… shall we be off?" he said, his pupils dilated as Mariella got to her feet shakily with a gulp.

"_My… dear… little… sister…"_

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

"It's so cold…"

"Where the hell did Ciel and Lydia go anyway?!... Do not leave me all by myself! I-I'm scared too you know…" Narissa sniffled, wiping her eyes, which were bloodshot from crying. She sighed shakily, looking at the stormy weather outside the cover balcony which separated the two school buildings.

"Maybe I should... go back to… room 1A… If I stay in this other school building too long, my head is really going to split…" she gulped, taking a shaky breath. After mustering up her courage she slowly walked back inside the first building and out of the rain, whimpering helplessly.

She slowly found her way back to the infirmary. She frowned, realizing no one was there and retrieved the antique festival doll before leaving the room. After wandering down the hall, she froze in fear, looking around frantically as a monotone weep filled the air.

Her breathing hitched as she looked at the doll and scowled, _"Dammit! This thing is making noises again…" _she thought as the doll continued to sob. She huffed and continued searching through the halls, even though she wasn't quite sure what she was looking for.

After wandering for some time, she peeked inside a room before hesitantly stepping inside. She gasped lightly at what she saw.

"Naho… Naho Saenoki!" she shouted to the girl as she ran up behind her. Naho turned, meeting Narissa's eyes with a cold, distant gaze as she stood silently. Narissa clenched her fists.

"You are a liar! Liar, LIAR! Those children didn't give a damn about the killer's mediocre repentance! T-They killed him! T-they killed our friend…" she said, her tone broken as her voice cracked. Naho blinked, absolutely expressionless. She gritted her teeth lividly.

"I have said it once and now I shall say it again…"

"Your voice really gets around." Ciel breathed, leaning in the classroom's doorway while clutching his bleeding head before walking to her halfway with a groan of pain, "You alright, Earl Campden…?"

"Ciel! You are one to ask! What on Earth happened to you?! There is blood e-everywhere!" she cried out, clenching her fists with wide eyes as she studied him from head to toe.

"Well… as soon as you turned the corner before, I got stuck in the head from behind… I was locked up in some room with those children spirits… then this large basterd with a hammer as well- n-nng! damn it hurts… h-however… I am fine… do not worry." he breathed. His head was bleeding badly, his hand covering a laceration near his left temple as his head throbbed.

"H-how… did you get here then…?" she asked curiously, approaching him to study the wound more closely while gently lifting his hand away from the wound.

"Well… after that… I fell unconscious and woke up in the first floor hallway… No idea how I got there though…" he said with a wince as she tried to clean the blood with a handkerchief.

She sighed, "Well…I'm happy to see you alive… I just… I do not know how much more of this I can take… I do not want anyone else to die!" she cried out. Ciel frowned and rubbed her shoulder reassuring with his clean hand.

"_I… am not mistaken."_

Narissa and Ciel turned to Naho suddenly in surprise as she continued.

"_If each of the child spirits were to find peace… even if they had to be appeased one by one... then these closed spaces, given shape by their bound souls… should not be able to remain in existence."_ She stated with her arms crossed over her chest.

"We let them hear the killer's regrets, though... and it did nothing to help us! What kind of person are we dealing with here, anyway?!" Ciel huffed, holding his throbbing and bleeding head, Narissa at his side worriedly.

_"The man with the hammer, who attacked you... He was their murderer... It seems he's got a violent streak even in death, as well. He harms the living indiscriminately. So your first order of business... should be to quell his wanton behavior. based on my mentor's research, that antique doll you've got in your hands should be a good place to start. It belong to him in life. He was given it by his mother, and reportedly, he relies on it to keep his mind levels and his heart in balance. I'm certain he must be looking for it..."  
_  
"Wait a moment... Who's this 'mentor' of yours?" Ciel asked curiously, narrowing his eyes in question. Naho's eyes widened as she glared back at him murderously, clenching her fists as she gritted her teeth lividly.

_"My personal affairs are not of your concern!" _she boomed heatedly before gasping lightly.

_"Sorry about that! you'll need to find that man's body... or his remains, at any rate. They should be in the school building somewhere. And if you find them, and return the doll to their side... Everything will be juuuuust fine!" _Naho groaned loudly and eerily out of nowhere, clutching her trembling body.

"Ms... Saenoki?" Narissa called hesitantly, looking to the spirit as she quaked, holding herself tightly and protectively.

_"Your friend's death... is your own fault." _She stated simply before disappearing into thin air, making Narissa and Ciel freeze before he shook his head in frustration.

"What the hell was that about? Can we really believe a word she just said?!" Ciel huffed irritably, Narissa frowning lightly while looking to where Naho once stood before them, the room left slightly cold from her presence.

"Maybe not... but it is a good place to start is any. Earlier, as I was passing through the first floor, the doll started crying... almost like weeping, loudly. We might be able to use it like a tracking device. It could lead us right to the murderer's body! ... Either way... Let us just keep moving, alright? Or... can you? How is your head? It's quite a bump you've got..." Narissa said, biting her lip worriedly.

"Luckily the man was a lousy aim; however he still hit my head full force with the handle. If he had been more accurate, I assure you I would've been dead long ago." Ciel sighed, cradling his head with one hand lightly, blood staining his now tangled hair.

"Let me see what I can do about dressing that wound... Hold still. " Narissa stated, moving his hand lightly as he winced. She examined the wound carefully before tearing some cloth from her dress, pressing it to the wound lightly.

"That will work for now… sorry I can do no more to help…" she said with a sigh. He shook his head lightly, clutching the cloth to keep it up.

"Do not apologize… it is better than nothing at all…" he said while smiling softly, making her blush. She sighed lightly and smiled back before a door opened on the opposite end of the room. Both nodded to each other before heading off to through the door, the two roaming the school together once again.

After wandering for a while, the two came to the second floor where the weeping sound resonated through the air. Narissa gasped lightly and pulled the doll out into view as it wept before speaking in its usual robotic monotone.

"_From the red door… six steps horse… thirteen paces rooster..." _

Carefully following the dolls directions, Narissa and Ciel noticed a slightly lifted board in the hallway near the red door that was the janitor's closet, an erratic television static still coming from inside.

Peering through the boards, a tiny bag was barely visible in the dark recesses as Ciel fished it old, clutching it in his hand firmly as he inspected the outside curiously. The outside of the simple hemp bag was stained with blood with a name tag tied to the front: _Ryou Yoshizawa._

"I have a bad feeling about this…" Ciel breathed as he narrowed his eyes, opening the bag. He gasped in shock and screamed, dropping the bag. Narissa jumped and screamed in surprise as Ciel watched the bag with wide eyes.

"W-what is it?! What is inside?!" Narissa demanded while trembling slightly as Ciel shook his head, picking up the back with a quaking hand.

"See for yourself…" He breathed, setting the bag in her hands. She grimaces and gulped before hesitantly peeking inside the hemp bag. A hideous odor wafted out from the bag, the heavy smell of iron following. Inside the bag was a small, plump tongue that was haphazardly severed from the mouth due to the jagged cut.

Narissa yelped, looking away fearfully as Ciel sighed shakily. "The nametag… it is a boy's name. The boy apparition… this must be his." Narissa nodded slowly, closing the bag as the congealing blood slowly leaked onto her hand. The two sighed before wandering back downstairs to the infirmary where Narissa had last seen the boy.

The ghost was where she had last seen him, still sitting quietly on the farthest bed in the corner. Ciel walked over nervously to the bedside and looked to Narissa hesitantly. She clutched the tongue bag before scooting up on the bed, sitting in front of the spirit as her body trembled.

At that moment the boy noticed her and stared up into her eyes while groaning incoherent phrases. Narissa whimpered helplessly, Ciel breathing out her name worriedly as she held the tongue bag out with a shaky hand.

"Ryou Yoshizawa! Yes, I know your name. Look…I can't even think to fathom the trauma you have suffered through. But… I know that hunting strangers because of your own despair is wrong! You can rest now though… T-this is yours right…? Please… take it back…" she pleaded, shutting her eyes while trembling slightly.

The boy blinked in surprise before taking the bag gently, thinking for a moment.

"_my hummhh…"_

"… _my tongue… thank you, Miss…"_

Upon returning the spirits tongue, the room began to quake violently, more so than usual. Narissa and Ciel gasped, nearly being thrown from the bed as the earthquake continued, the boy disappearing quietly.

"W-What is going on?!" Ciel shouted, covering Narissa from falling wood protectively. Floorboards broke, ceiling beams fell, and windows cracked around them as the two Earls clutched onto each other fearfully, screaming as they embraced each other tightly.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

"Eh…? Dammit! Another earthquake?!"

Adrian got to his feet quickly, grunting while trying to keep his footing, the floorboards cracking and shifting around him. He sighed deeply in relief as the shaking finally came to an end.

"I will not get anywhere wallowing in self pity… I should head back to Isabelle to check on her." Sighs again, glancing in defeat at the wall where the walkway once was before heading down the hall quickly to the infirmary.

"Isabelle?" he called, looking to the infirmary door. Isabelle sat up against the wall outside the infirmary, her legs tucked to her chest. She glanced up, noticing his return. Adrian turned and narrowed his eyes before kneeling in front of her.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked, narrowing his eyes in question while sitting. She scooted forward onto her knees, frowning lightly.

"Adrian… please do not leave me alone again… I got scared being in there alone… I ran into a mysterious dark entity in there once and… I was afraid it would come back…" she said softly, her frown deepening as he frowned back with a sigh.

"I'm so sorry… I did not know… forgive me for leaving you Isabelle. I was looking for Mariella… but it seems the other building is inaccessible at the moment. " He said, rubbing her shoulder reassuringly. She blinked in surprise.

"Other building…? There is a whole other building other than this one?!" she asked in disbelief, her eyes wide as he nodded slowly. She sighed, "Let's keep moving then… maybe we can find her somewhere else…" she said softly.

He nodded, getting to his feet before helping her up sweetly. They both nodded to each other before, once again, heading off deep into the halls of the school. They wandered upstairs aimlessly, the erratic TV static echoing from the janitor's closet. The door was open.

Isabelle and Adrian looked to each other nervously before hesitantly heading into the room. It was pitch black in side, the air heavy. Adrian felt around for something and touched a box. He yelped and backed away. Just then, the lights flickered on, revealing the room around them as they both yelped in surprise.

The room was in ruins, much like the rest of the school. Lockers where located on the far wall, close to a static TV with a camera of some sort affixed to the top of it. A foul odor filled the cold room. Adrian narrowed his eyes, realizing it had been the TV he had touched.

They both looked at each other silently, deep in thought. With no other leads to go off of, the janitor's closet was their only hope.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Ciel and Narissa panted as the quake ceased. Ciel sighed going to speak when Narissa suddenly embraced him, hugging him tightly as he blinked in surprise before sighing again, wrapping his arms around her protectively.

"Hey… it is all right… You did go, Narissa… you were very brave, much braver than I suspected." He said, his tone soft and reassuring as she nodded with a whimper, wiping her tears away as she sniffled.

"I guess we really managed to appease the spirit too…" he said, breathing out a laugh as he slowly got off the bed, helping Narissa off it as well. She sniffled again and took his hand, "Let us keep moving. We are finally making progress after all. We shall find the others in no time…" he stated confidently, squeezing her hand as she nodded, cracking a smile.

He led her from the infirmary with determination, walking the halls before the doll began to weep again, the same as it did before.

"_Go to where the floor collapsed… but then got better… one step rooster… ten paces rat…"_

Narissa and Ciel listened closely before looking to each other, nodding firmly as the doll finished it's instructions. They quickly hurried to the location of the broken floor located at the stairwell and followed the instructions of the doll.

In the darkness of the lifted floorboards, Ciel fished out a winding key placed inside. He narrowed his eyes in confusion before getting to his feet.

"What the hell is this for… it do not look like any key I have ever seen." He said with a sigh. Narissa sighed back before leading him deeper into the school, listening closely for the weeping of the doll.

While wandering the halls, Narissa stuck her hand out, stopping Ciel. He narrowed his eyes, grumbling in protest before following her gaze. A new hallway extended from the wall. They both blinked at each other before nodding, hesitantly heading through the new passage.

The hall led to a locker room, which was, of course, in ruins. The lockers were shifted out of place with their doors dented and damaged. The shower heads were twisted and also dented with filthy water pooling below them near the clogged drains full of thick black hair.

A door to the far corner was wide open. Both of the Earl's entered the doorway, which led outside to a large, deep pool. Debris of all sorts filled the murky green water, including logs and other boards. The water was full to them brim with bacteria, giving the surface a green tint.

Ciel narrowed his eyes, the two of them being soaked by the rain before he turned to Narissa. She glanced at him curiously, clutching the doll as he sighed.

"Why don't you wait inside… it is raining quite violently and I do not wish for you to become ill in a place such as this. Stay dry inside the locker room, I will only be a second." He said softly, obviously worried for her. Her eyes widened in surprise as she, surprisingly, nodded obediently, handing him the doll before walking slowly inside.

He sighed, walking the rim of the pool which was crumbling slowly, eroding into the murky water. Ciel stopped and picked up a rusted key before glancing down a little flight of stairs which came to another door.

He narrowed his eyes, retrieving the rusted key before going to the door. When he stood up, he froze, hearing a familiar voice.

"I've had enough…"

He turned quickly, hearing the sound of running, heavy footfalls echoing from the other side of the pool. He squinted, looking around, but the rain hitched his sight. He cursed under his breath before running along the edge of the pool noticing ripples in the murky water.

"There's no way…!" he glanced to the locker room before looking back to the water. Cursing under his breath, he took a deep inhale before diving in, thrashing around to stay afloat in his panic. He patted before diving down, searching the depths for his friend.

His eyes widened as he spotted her, floating above the bottom of the pool as tiny bubbled filtered from her mouth, her eyes shut tight. He narrowed his eyes, taking hold of her wrist tightly before bringing her to the surface with a deep breath, panting while holding her afloat.

He panted heavily, dragging her out of the pool before collapsing onto his knees, trying to catch his breath. Narissa groaned lightly, her eyes opening as she glanced over at Ciel, breathing out his name as he panted harshly.

"Ciel…?" she called, sitting up stiffly, "W-what happened…?!" she questioned, looking down at her soaked dress.

"Y-you… dove in the… pool… stupid… girl…" he breathed, shaking out his wet hair, retying his eye patch while catching his breath. She frowned, biting her lip as he shook his head. "Forget it. All that matters is you are alright… come now. Let us go." He said, getting to his feet while offering her his hand, which she graciously took.

Using the key he had found earlier, which broke after being used, the two Earls headed inside the room, with "Pump Room" labeled above the door.

They shivered lightly, Ciel running his fingers through his wet hair while panting, trying to warm up while inspecting the pump room. He narrowed his eyes, looking curiously at all of the rusted machinery, finding a mechanism that controlled the pool's drain.

Narissa tilted her head, "Should we drain it…? To inspect the bottom I mean…" she asked curiously. Ciel sighed and turned the handle quickly, making her gasp in surprise as a loud splash echoed from outside. "Y-you cannot just keep pressing and turning things as you damn well please Ciel!" she shouted angrily.

"As said before, we cannot just stand around and cower over what might happen. Come on, the pool is drained and we can have a better look around now." He stated simply, leaving the pump room. Narissa huffed, following him back outside into the rain.

The pool was full of corpses, which had mostly been preserved under the water. They both gulped nervously before climbing down the ladders on the pools edges into the basin. Water dripped outside of a spigot. Ciel narrowed his eyes, approaching the slowly growing puddle.

In the murky puddle was a tiny bag. Ciel, once again, fished out the bag, which was identical to the last, also containing a severed human tongue. A nametag was pinned to it with the nametag tied to the front: _Tokiko Tsuji._

"It is a girl's name… but which… I do not know…" Narissa said, rubbing her arms as she shivered in the rain, slowly getting cleaned of the murky water with the clear rain water. Ciel nodded, clutching the bag as they both quickly exited the pool area, not wanting to stay there any longer.

They both wandered back into the main school building in hopes to dry off quickly after ringing out some of their clothing in the locker room. They both roamed the second floor before being spotted by two of the female apparitions. Ciel clutched the tongue bag as the two gasped.

"H-How are we supposed to know who's tongue we have?!" she shouted in question. She yelped. One little girl's spirit staggered toward her, blood gushing from the gaping cross-section in her head as she walked forward. Narissa took the tongue bag, praying she had the right spirit.

"Tokiko… Tsuji!" she shouted. The girl gasped lightly, as Narissa held the hemp bag out to her, "… This is yours… I am giving it back now!" she declared. Tokiko sputtered before taking the bag, disappearing without another word.

"Two down. Two to go!" Narissa gasped lightly, Ciel pulling her back into his chest as the other ghost took notice of them. Narissa whimpered and Ciel gritted his teeth, dragging her away.

They both stopped, catching their breath in the stairwell. And then, the doll began to weep. They both gasped lightly, listening intently for their next instructions; however, they were somewhat hesitant.

"_Where your friend was splattered… The floorboards beneath that wall… right under his globby entrails… Where the floor dips and the blood pools… drip drop drip drop… smelly smelly icky icky… get in there good and DIG IT OUT!"_

"Dear God no…! Please no! NO!" Narissa screamed, throwing the doll to the floor as it giggled madly and eerily. Ciel sighed shakily, glaring at the doll. He clenched his jaw.

"DAMN YOU! You getting a good laugh out of all this?! I-I… I do not even think we CAN bring ourselves to get it…" he said, choking back tears as his eyes glazed over. Narissa sobbed harshly, her hands covering her face.

"Is someone there?"

They both froze, turning to the source of the voice, the person standing at the top of the stairs, looking at the curiously, his sketchbook in hand.

"T-Tobias?!" Ciel shouted in surprise. He got to his feet, looking over him in shock as he smiled with a sigh of relief.

"Narissa! And Ciel! I am relieved to see you both safe and sound!" he said with a smile before taking notice of Narissa, "What happened to her?" he asked curiously.

"It is… a long story… never mind that- where have you been?!" he asked frantically. Tobias chuckled lightly.

"I was in the second building for quite some time, but, only a short while ago, I lost consciousness and ended up here… Oh, yes, I also briefly crossed paths with Adrian and Mariella as well. However, it seemed the next time I saw Mariella, she had been separated from him… " he stated simply, holding his sketchbook against his hip, blood staining the cover.

"U-um… Tobias… where… did you get that…?" Narissa asked cautiously, getting to her feet shakily while gesturing to his hand, her eyes wide as Ciel narrowed his eyes before stepping back in realization.

"Hmm? Oh this? I found it under the floorboards in the hallway… just up these stairs. Is it some kind of charm? Do you want it? Please take it, I have no need for this particular item… I only wish to find a certain someone." He stated before casually placing a tiny hemp bag in Ciel's open hands before leaving.

Ciel and Narissa froze in utter disbelief, Tobias's footsteps becoming more and more distant as they looked at the bag, identical to the other two with a human tongue inside and a nametag pinned to the front: _Yuki Kanno. _

Ciel shakily picked up the doll, the final tongue bag in hand. Both of their bodies quaked, both knowing what Tobias had down to get the bag. Ciel gulped and went to speak but was cut off by Narissa screaming and sobbing.

"NOO! O-oh god! NO!" she sobbed harshly, clutching her head tightly while digging her fingernails into her skull, her pupils dilating slightly. Ciel gasped, grabbing her shoulder with his free hand.

"Narissa! H-hey…!" he gritted his teeth, "SNAP OUT OF IT!" he screamed.

_Smack. _Narissa gasped in surprise as Ciel's hand met her face. A red mark appeared on her cheek after he had struck her. She held her cheek, tears in the corners of her eyes as he sighed shakily, "Come on… let's finish this quickly… once and for all…" he stated, holding his hand out, which she hesitantly took.

They both nodded and gulped before heading back to the second floor, spotting the ghost girl. Narissa stepped forward, clutching the tongue back confidently.

"Yuki Kanno!" she shouted. The ghost turned in surprise. "I have something of yours! And I'm giving it back now… you can rest in peace! Please…" she pleaded, holding the tongue bag out.

Yuki blinked in surprise, taking the bag gently before disappearing without a trace. Everything fell silent.

Ciel and Narissa stood quietly before the school began to tremble violently. Narissa screamed as she was thrown from her feet, Ciel reaching for her as the halls crumbled around them.

"T-This is a big one! Hold on Narissa!" he demanded, holding her close as classroom windows shattered, walls collapsed and floors broke open. They both screamed before they were eventually consumed by darkness.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

"N-nng… e-eh…? W-what… where…?"

Ciel groaned, his arm over his face, lying with his back on the floor. He blinked looking up at a high ceiling then blinked again, his blurry vision adjusting before his eyes widened. He sat up quickly, looking around in utter disbelief.

Finely polished furniture decorated the room. Curtains of silk reaching the tall ceilings draped delicately over the clear and clean windows, the world outside dark with rain falling outside. The buffet of food was mostly clean, most of the food and utensils gone.

He blinked again, getting to his feet hurriedly, looking around before spotting Narissa unconscious on the floor. He sighs in relief, kneeling by her side. He smiles softly, seeing she was breathing, almost like she was peacefully sleeping.

Ciel got to his feet, opening the door and blinked as he stepped into the corridor lined with high windows. _"So this is all real… we are really back home in England…" _he said, breathing out a laugh with a smile. He sighed then froze.

"YAH!" Narissa screamed back in the room. He gasped, bursting through the door. Ciel's eyes widened as he saw Narissa on her knees, a dark hole engulfing a portion of the room. He grit his teeth lividly as he grabbed Narissa, holding her protectively.

"I thought we were done with this!" he shouted, Narissa whimpering as a blue light materialized before them. A ghost girl stepped forward, twiddling her fingers nervously before gazing up at them with one eye.

"_It was a rainy evening after school, just like this one… on the day I was kidnapped. I remember I had a fight with my mom that morning. I didn't want to see her face… so, after school, I decided instead of going home… I'd park myself in the outside walkway for a little, and watch the rain. That is when Mr. Yoshikazu showed up. He sat down next to me."_

"W-why is she telling us this…?" Narissa breathed, whispering to Ciel as she got to her feet, Ciel helping her as he shrugged, listening to Yuki curiously yet cautiously.

"_I told him all about my fight with my mom, and he listened really closely, and just kept saying, 'uh-huh, uh-huh'… He was really sick and could not speak much, you see… but he was a very kind man. I really liked him. But then…"_ Yuki whined, choking back tears as her eye glazed over.

Ciel and Narissa frowned, pitying the spirit. _"You two are nice people. I'm so sorry. Thank you… for what you did back there. For making the effort… to help those of us… who were killed in that school."_

"Did we not succeed? Why are you still here?!" Ciel protested, Narissa biting her lip as Yuki frowned.

"_No… you didn't." _

"B-but, we gave you back your tongues! We gave you the ability to speak out again! And we even got your murderer to repent for what he did! Is it just that… you cannot forgive him, no matter what?" Narissa asked, narrowing her eyes in confusion.

"_Appeasing us is not about forgiveness. It does not matter if we forgive or not. Repentance is between the criminal and the victim. It's the sole act capable of moving us. And we exist as fragments of the sacred ground upon which Heavenly Host is sealed. I believe that moving us, is your best course of action… But it is not enough. His repentance… was not enough."_

"_We are just mere cogs that hold the closed spaces together. I am just glad I was able to get even the two of you back safely… However… I do not believe I can bring the rest of your friends back… Those closed spaces… have eaten a lot of innocent souls. Far too many, in fact. The grudges of those who died there have filled every last corner of them. There's no room left."_

"_And because the agony and pain have nowhere left to go… it has begun feeding on the minds of the souls like us who are bound there. It will not be long… before I turn back into a vengeful spirit who attacks people without mercy."_

"So we are going to lose you as our ally then…" Narissa said sadly, frowning while running her fingers through her silver hair. Ciel sighed in disbelief while rubbing his head. "Why can you not just bring home our friends then?!" she demanded.

"_There may be… one way… I believe you already know… You have to return to the closed spaces." _Yuki said with a worried frown as Narissa and Ciel gasped. _"You must find all four of us Heavenly Host kidnapping and murder victims… and put us all to rest. Then, the closed spaces will not have their cogs anymore, so they will begin to fall apart… and you just might get your friends back…" _

"You expect us… to go back?! And this time, instead of just having one person to appease, we have to go back to the drawing board and appease all four of you?!" Ciel shouted in disbelief, shaking his eyes while sighing shakily.

"Why… can you not tell us why our previous efforts failed? Why they were not good enough?" Narissa asked curiously yet cautiously as she went to Ciel's side. Yuki frowned quietly.

"_It is just… something I do not want to remember. But… if you really want to know… I shall tell you. I will tell you everything…" _Yuki spoke softly, taking Narissa's hand. The two girls thought seemed to merge at that moment as Narissa gasped, the air seemingly knocked out of her as she stumbled away before falling unconsciousness. Ciel's eyes widened.

"NARISSA!?"

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

"E-eh… w-what… happened to me… I-I… I cannot move… and I cannot see?!" Narissa's shouted in protest. Her hands were bound behind her back as she was lying face up.

"What's going on…?!"

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

There was an article sprawled out before Isabelle and Adrian. They narrowed their eyes, reading it curiously while kneeling by each other side by side.

_"Sachiko Shinozaki. The little girl in the red dress, and the only survivor of the horrific murders that occurred in the Heavenly Host Elementary School. Following the incident, Sachiko's Family fled from the area, moving to another prefecture to escape the frightful memories that remained here."_

"_Strangely, however, I have been unable to locate any other records of the Shinozaki family. No matter where I look, the only information I can find about them comes from newspaper reports on the Heavenly Host murders." _

"_Granted, when an elementary school becomes the stage for a grisly incidents such as this, perpetrated by none other than the principal's own son... it stands to reason that the scandal would serve as the primary focus for public interest, with all other details fading into the background." _

"_So of course, after learning that Sachiko was safe, further news on her whereabouts were largely ignored in favor of the media circus surrounding the school. But there is more to it than that. People were not just I'm interested in learning of Sachiko's history or whereabouts... there was simply no data to be had."_

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

_"I cannot move my body I guess... But I can clearly see the room I'm in now. There's one boy and two girls in here, aside from myself. I recognize them... They are the children who were killed in Heavenly Host during that incident. But they are still alive! Unfortunately, they are all bound hand and foot just sprawled out on the floor. And so am I. That is the real reason I cannot move..." _

Narissa gulped, the sound of heavy footsteps echoing around the room as the man shuffled around randomly. The children around Narissa cried, wailing for their moms and dads helplessly. She bit her lip, looking around with pity before the man walked over with a cloth.

He lifted her up roughly, muttering incomprehensible phrases as he tied the blindfold over her eyes before dropping her back down with a grunt.

"_Now I'm blindfolded. I cannot see a thing that is happening to me!"_ Narissa continued to plead and beg, the man's only response being his disappearing footsteps as he stumbled away from her and the children as they all let out frightened sobs.

"_In… or… der… o… kay?"_

"_In order?! What does he mean?!" _Narissa whimpered, choking back tears behind the blind fold as the footsteps scuffled around. She held her breath in the sudden silence.

Sudden screams of primal, pure terror shattered the silence, the boy on the end wailing at the top of his lungs, screaming bloody murder.

"A-Ahh! N-NO! W-WAHHH! YAHHHHH! A-AHHH! "

Narissa's breathing hitched as her body trembled in the restraints. The boy grunted harshly through his screams. His voice cracked as his screams faded to groans, aggressive stabbing resonating through the air with splatters. The screams of the little boy who was being ripped apart from the inside out finally halted after what felt like an eternity.

Without a moment of silence or peace, the girl next to her wailed helplessly, bumping into her as the young girl thrashed around. She panted harshly through her cutting screams.

"NOOOO! No… no! NOOOOOOOOOOO! Aaauughhhh…! Oolh… unf…"

The young girl gurgled beside her, more sounds of stabbing echoing just next to her. The girl choked through her sobs, not being lucky enough to fall unconscious in order to escape the pain just like the boy. The sound of tearing flesh ended her screams. The cracks and crunches of bone followed as some dropped with a squash nearby.

"_Oh dear God… why am I relieved by this silence?! The kid next to me just died! … 'In order'… Ah! I-Im… next!" _Narissa yelled out whimpering helplessly before grunting as someone pulled her hair aggressively, bringing her head up.

"_They are holding me by the hair! And taking my blindfold off…! Which means… I finally get to see the face of my killer…"_

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

_"The four missing children were found in the basement room at Heavenly Host Elementary School, unused and officially sealed since the building's construction. when authorities entered, they were greeted with an inhumanly horrific sight. Based upon the evidence at hand, the murder weapon was determined to be a pair of large sewing scissors in the hands of the accused."_

"_Investigators suspected some hesitation on the man's part, however, as the deceased victims' wounds did not indicate that his full strength had been used. Nonetheless, he had clearly acted with extreme malicious intent. Official cause of death for the three murdered children has been listed as 'loss of blood following removal of the tongue.' But the actual state of affairs was not quite so clinical, nor even so 'pleasant'..."_

"_The following details have been extrapolated from information previously unreleased to the public, or at least, previously on reported by news outlets. These details of the crime are based on the official police testimony of Sachiko Shinozaki herself. Evidently, The victims were bound, blindfolded and spaced out on the floor... then killed, one by one."_

"_One was repeatedly stabbed in the abdomen with the before he mentioned pair of scissors, then had many of his internal organs forcefully dug out. his discarded innards were found partially buried beneath the earth and floor of the basement room. Another was stabbed in the head dozens upon dozens of times, to such an extent that all flesh and bone above her jawline was essentially minced away."_

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Narissa blinked her eyes as light filled her vision. She blinked, her breathing hitched as she stared back up at her killer. Her eyes widened in utter disbelief. She wanted to scream, but couldn't find her voice as she cowered, her body trembling violently.

"Y-You… n-no… y-you cannot… b-be… n-no…" she stuttered. The killer stared at her intently; the blood of their victims stained their face. Their tame look turned to a painfully wide smile as they giggled madly.

"I-it cannot be… y-you… y-you are… one of the c-children… n-no… Sachiko."

Sachiko giggled madly. Yoshikazu was crouched in the corner, cowering fearfully as Sachiko snipped the scissors open and closed in a monotone and eerie beat. The scissors snipping could make anyone lose their mind.

She giggled, lowering the scissors closer to her face, the sound resonating in the room. She brought the scissors down, her smirk somehow widening as she brought up the scissors, holding them over Narissa's left eye.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

_"The third victim was stabbed in the left eye an indeterminate number of times... until her eyeball became soup-like inconsistency. She was eventually just left like that, slowly bleeding to death and horrible agony. Strangely, it was only after these mutilations had already been inflicted that the killer went back and severed the victims' tongues." _

"_Learning the truth about these proceedings is shocking even to me, and makes it nearly impossible to except the murder as anything but a monster. Bearing witness to every moment of this was a 7-year-old girl name Sachiko. In many ways, she's the most pitiable and long-suffering of them all. But it was through her tearful, frightened testimony that Yoshikszu Yanagihori was officially charged." _

"_Now, going back to the hunt for me information on this unfortunate girls whereabouts, it was her words the ultimate led to Yoshikszu's sentencing. Therefore, it comes as no real surprise that sensitive information pertaining to her and your family would be withheld. That is to be expected. What is not expected, however, is that there is not even the slightest trace of this information left to find. It is as if it simply never existed." _

"_Therefore, I cannot help but consider alternate possible explanations... and I remind you, this is near conjecture... but one question keeps nagging at the back of my mind: was Yoshikazu Yanagihori really the murderer of the three victims? Is it possible this crime was not actually perpetrated by him at all?" _

"_Think about it. In his final days, Yoshikazu was incapable of communicating with others through speech. And despite his childlike revision, he had always been a personable and friendly man. As the saying goes, he wouldn't hurt a fly." _

"_All his relatives, friends and neighbors confirmed as much, shocked to hear that such a kindly man would commit these unconscionable atrocities. He certainly had no motive for this crime, either. There was nothing for him to gain from it. Then again, he may simply have lost his mind. Look at his father..." _

"_It was around the same time that principal Takamine Yanagihori suddenly began speaking in tongues and acting in a mostly peculiar way... not to mention scribbling in comprehensible gibberish all over his walls, as if possessed. He seemed frightened of someone and would often be found crouching in the corner of his office, moaning and thrashing, when visitors came by. If you could wind up in such a beleaguered state with no warning, then perhaps so too could his son..."_

"_I believe that we are looking at a curse far more powerful than anything man could devise. From the time it opened its doors to the day it closed them forever... Heavenly Host Elementary School's sealed basement room has existed as some form of cursed ground. And to find the underlying cause, we must go back beyond the infamous kidnapping and murder incident. Back a whole 20 years." _

"_I believe I may have found a clue that could shed some light on the situation. It may be a bit far-fetched, as leads go, but it's a leave nonetheless. Regrettably, since Heavenly Host was not only close down but demolished altogether... It is no longer possible to investigate the basement room directly." _

"_But my protégé has found what may be the next best thing. Something that could make the impossible possible once more. Preparations are now being made to pursue this lead. You sure not to miss the next installment. It may be the scoop of a lifetime..."_

**End of Chapter 5**

**I AM SO SORRY IT'S LATE! ;-; forgive me, I wasn't able to post this yesterday, but this chapter, evidently, is suuuuuper long! BUT I vow to post the 6****th**** and final chapter on Halloween as scheduled! (hopefully) Be sure to look out for Chapter 6 on October 31****st****!**

**Stay creative my friends~ **


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